Epimysium
Encyclopedia
Epimysium is a layer of connective tissue
Connective tissue
"Connective tissue" is a fibrous tissue. It is one of the four traditional classes of tissues . Connective Tissue is found throughout the body.In fact the whole framework of the skeleton and the different specialized connective tissues from the crown of the head to the toes determine the form of...

, which ensheaths the entire muscle
Muscle
Muscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...

. It is composed of dense irregular connective tissue. It is continuous with fascia
Fascia
A fascia is a layer of fibrous tissue that permeates the human body. A fascia is a connective tissue that surrounds muscles, groups of muscles, blood vessels, and nerves, binding those structures together in much the same manner as plastic wrap can be used to hold the contents of sandwiches...

 and other connective tissue wrappings of muscle including the endomysium
Endomysium
The endomysium, meaning within the muscle, is a layer of connective tissue that ensheaths a muscle fiber and is composed mostly from reticular fibers. It also contains capillaries, nerves, and lymphatics...

, and perimysium
Perimysium
Perimysium is a sheath of connective tissue that groups muscle fibers into bundles or fascicles.Recent advances in muscle physiology suggest that the perimysium plays a role in transmitting lateral contractile movements...

. It is also continuous with tendons where it becomes thicker and collagenous. The Epimysium also protects muscles from friction against other muscles and bones. Plural
Plural
In linguistics, plurality or [a] plural is a concept of quantity representing a value of more-than-one. Typically applied to nouns, a plural word or marker is used to distinguish a value other than the default quantity of a noun, which is typically one...

 of epimysium is epimysia
Aponeurosis
Aponeurosis
Aponeuroses are layers of flat broad tendons. They have a shiny, whitish-silvery color, are histologically similar to tendons, and are very sparingly supplied with blood vessels and nerves. When dissected, aponeuroses are papery, and peel off by sections...

--where tendon
Tendon
A tendon is a tough band of fibrous connective tissue that usually connects muscle to bone and is capable of withstanding tension. Tendons are similar to ligaments and fasciae as they are all made of collagen except that ligaments join one bone to another bone, and fasciae connect muscles to other...

 attach to bone
Bone
Bones are rigid organs that constitute part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...

.
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