Which muscles are located posterior to the thyroid gland?

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In the neck, the thyroid gland sits on the trachea just in front of the vertebral column. Right behind it lies the longus coli, a deep neck flexor that runs along the anterior surface of the cervical vertebrae. This muscle sits posterior to the thyroid and is the classic posterior boundary of the gland in imaging and dissection views. The sternocleidomastoid is a large superficial muscle of the lateral neck that lies more to the side and in front of the thyroid region, not behind it. The omohyoid runs from the shoulder to the hyoid bone in a superficial, anterior neck plane, so it’s not posterior to the thyroid. The scalenus anterior is positioned laterally and superiorly, also not directly behind the gland. Therefore, the muscle truly located posterior to the thyroid gland is the longus coli.