Anatomy Guide › Upper limb
Supraspinatus Muscle
The supraspinatus is a modest-sized muscle with an outsized reputation. It occupies the shallow fossa above the spine of the shoulder blade — its name simply means 'above the spine (of the scapula)' — and sends its tendon sideways through a narrow bony tunnel to attach on the top of the humeral head. It is one of the four rotator cuff muscles, and its special assignment is initiating abduction: the first degrees of lifting your arm away from your side begin with supraspinatus, before the powerful deltoid takes over.
Just as important is what it does invisibly. The shoulder's socket is so shallow that the humeral head must be actively held in place; the supraspinatus and its cuff partners act as dynamic ligaments, compressing the ball into the socket throughout every arm movement so the deltoid's pull doesn't simply drag the humerus upward into the bone above.
That bone above is the muscle's undoing. The supraspinatus tendon threads a tight corridor beneath the acromion, and with age, overhead work, or repetitive sport, the tendon can fray against this roof — impingement — and eventually tear. Supraspinatus tears are the most common rotator cuff injury and one of the most frequent reasons for shoulder pain after middle age; the classic signs are a painful arc when raising the arm and aching on the outer shoulder at night. Many partial tears respond to physiotherapy that retrains the cuff's stabilizing role.
In Anamo, the supraspinatus sits in the tight shoulder cluster with the scapula, clavicle, and humeral head. It is a precision answer: when shoulder heat is strong but the big bones aren't correct, the cuff muscles above the scapular spine deserve the next guess.
- Starts the first degrees of every arm raise
- One of the four rotator cuff muscles gripping the shoulder joint
- Its tendon runs through a tight tunnel beneath the acromion
- The most commonly torn rotator cuff tendon
Think you could find the supraspinatus muscle on a 3D model? Play Anamo and test yourself — every guess is color-coded by how close it lands to the mystery structure.