Abductor digiti minimi muscle of hand in three slips that are inserted into the ulnopalmar margin of the proximal phalanx, the palmar plate of the metacarpophalangeal joint, and the sesamoid bone when present. Some fibers insert into the finger's dorsal aponeurosis, which is why the muscle acts similar to a dorsal interosseus muscle. Additionally, the ulnar-most portion of the tendon inserts into the little finger's digital cord, and the muscle thus forms part of a structure that flexes the metacarpophalangeal joint and extends the interphalangeal joints. It is innervated by the deep branch of the ulnar nerve (C8–T1). The abductor digit minimi develops at an early
Stapedius muscle of the facial nerve, the stapedius is paralyzed and hyperacusis may result. Like the stapes bone to which it attaches, the stapedius muscle shares evolutionary history with other vertebrate structures. The mammalian stapedius evolved from a muscle called the depressor mandibulae in other tetrapods, the function of which was to open the jaws (this function was taken over by the digastric muscle in mammals). The depressor mandibulae arose from the levator operculi in bony fish, and is equivalent to the epihyoidean in sharks. Like the stapedius, all of these muscles derive from the hyoid arch and are innervated by cranial