The thyroid cartilage has been exposed for a vertical hemilaryngectomy. This cartilage is the largest of the laryngeal cartilages. It consists of two roughly quadrilateral laminae (alae) of hyaline cartilage. These fuse anteriorly in their inferior two thirds, but are separated superiorly by the deep thyroid notch where they extend furthest anteriorly to form the laryngeal prominence. The thyroid cartilage is more prominent in males.
