A saddle joint has an interesting arrangement of bones in it. In this joint, one bone is shaped like a saddle with the other bone resting on it like a rider on a horse. These joints are much balanced and stable joints as compared to the hinge joint. The best example of a saddle joint […]
In a pivot joint, one bone moves without disturbing other bones. This joint is found between the head and the neck. This joint is also called the rotatory joint that allows only rotational movement, as in case of the movement of the head. One can turn one’s head from right to left or from left
The ball and socket joint or sphere-shaped joint is a joint in which one of the bones is round like a ball. The round bone fits into another bone which resembles a socket. The round bone rotates within the socket bone. This type of joint permits the bone to move in all directions. The two
The synovial joints are the freely movable joints. The characteristics of a freely movable joint are: (1) the ends of bones which enter into the formation of the joints are covered by hyaline cartilage. (2) Ligaments are required to bind the bones together. (3) There is a joint cavity that is enclosed by a capsule
Cartilaginous joints are slightly movable joints in which the joint surfaces are joined by cartilages. The joints between the vertebrae in the spine and joints between the ribs are the common examples of the cartilaginous joints. The injury in the cartilage causes pain in the cartilaginous joints. The pain in the joints and stiffness is
A joint is the place where two bones meet or the point where the bones meet the cartilage. The bones are held together at the joint by ligaments. Joints allow us to twist, turn and move our rigid skeleton. The movement of the joint is facilitated by the adjoining muscles. These muscles exert a certain
Thigh The bones of the lower limbs are connected with the trunk by means of the pelvic girdle. The lower limb supports the body; they help to maintain balance and mobility. The part between the hip and the knee is referred as the thigh. The bone of the thigh is the femur bone, which is
The bones of the hand are arranged in groups. The three types of the bones that constitute a hand are: the carpals, the metacarpals and the phalanges. The carpals or the bones which enter into the formation of the wrist are short bones. The metacarpals (long bones) form the skeleton of the palm of the
The pelvic girdle is a link between the trunk (upper part of the body) and the lower part of the body. The hip or pelvic girdle is made up of two coxal (two hip bones : left and right) bones. Each coxal bone is shaped up by the combination of three bones: ilium, ischium and
The vertebral column is also known as the spinal column. It is a flexible structure formed by a number of irregularly shaped bones called vertebrae. It consists of 26 vertebrae in adults and 33 in children. The backbone extends from the neck to the tail bone. The foremost job of this column is to provide
Ear ossicles are the three smallest bones of the body. They are located in the middle ear cavity. They are joined together with tiny joints. The main function of these bones is to transmit sound vibrations. These three bones are named as: the malleus (the first ossicles), incus (second ossicles) and stapes (the third ossicles).
The skull is the bony framework of the head, which gives shape to the head and the face. Eight flat bones join together to form a skull. The skull is arranged in two parts: the cranium and the facial skeleton. The cranium also called brain box, consists of four bones while the facial skeleton consists
The word ‘appendicular’ refers to anything related to a limb or limbs. The appendicular skeleton is the second part of our skeletal system, which contains a total of 126 bones. This part consists of the bones of the limbs (hands and legs) along with their girdles: pectoral and pelvic. Pelvic girdle is the place where
The axial skeleton is the part of the skeleton which is comprised of 80 bones of the head and trunk of the body. Axial skeleton is comprised of the bones of the skull, the ossicles of the middle ear, the hyoid bone, the rib cage, sternum and the vertebral column. It lies in the mid-line
Cartilage is an important component of the human body. It is a connective tissue that helps in the structural formation of the body and provides support to the other tissues of the body. It is found in many areas of the body. For example, joints between bones, ends of the ribs, between the vertebrae in