Dissection of Muscles
General
—In dissecting muscles a prime requisite of successful dissection is to keep the muscles clean. Fat, connective tissue, etc., is to be carefully but thoroughly cleared away from the surface of muscles and from between them. Frequently when it seems impossible to distinguish the structures described, all difficulty will vanish as soon as the dissection is thoroughly cleaned.
In transecting a muscle, work under it completely from one edge to the other (except in case of very wide muscles), then introduce the scissors or scalpel, and cut it by a smooth clean cut. Always leave the entire origin with one-half of the muscle, the entire insertion with the other half.
The student must be prepared to find in some cases considerable variations from the conditions described. The descriptions attempt to give an account of the usual structures, but specimens showing no variations whatever are undoubtedly rare.