Extraocular Muscles: Controlling Eye Movement & Vision
Smooth muscles allow you to direct your eyeballs.
The muscles that control the movement of the eyes are called the extraocular muscles. There are six extraocular muscles, four of which are rectus muscles and two of which are oblique muscles. The rectus muscles are named for their straight (rectus) shape, and the oblique muscles are named for their oblique angle.
The rectus muscles are located at the front of the eye, and the oblique muscles are located at the back of the eye. The rectus muscles pull the eye in different directions, and the oblique muscles rotate the eye.
The extraocular muscles are innervated by the cranial nerves. The cranial nerves are twelve nerves that connect the brain to the rest of the body. The cranial nerves that innervate the extraocular muscles are the oculomotor nerve, the trochlear nerve, and the abducens nerve.
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