The teres major muscle is a muscle of the upper limb. It attaches to the scapula and the humerus and is one of the seven scapulohumeral muscles. It is a thick but somewhat flattened muscle.
The tendon, at its insertion, lies behind that of the latissimus dorsi, from which it is separated by a bursa, the two tendons being, however, united along their lower borders for a short distance. The fibers of these two muscles run parallel to each other, and both muscles insert at the crest of the lesser tubercle of the humerus (also described as the medial lip of the intertubercular sulcus).
Isolated teres major injuries are rare. They are almost exclusively encountered in professional and high-level recreational athletes— baseball pitchers in particular. These injuries can be debilitating, requiring lengthy rehabilitation periods and missed seasons of athletics. No clear indications for surgical treatment exist. Outcomes have been generally good after both nonoperative and operative treatment.[5]
Additional images
Position of teres major muscle (shown in red). Animation.
^Donohue, Benjamin; Lubitz, Marc (December 20, 2016). "Sports Injuries to the Latissimus Dorsi and Teres Major". The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 45 (10): 2428–2435. doi:10.1177/0363546516676062. PMID28125914. S2CID3872258.