Cervical Spine Anatomy Flashcards
Cervical spine’s important job
Supports our head
Directs our vision
Protects the spinal cord (connection or our brain to the rest of the body)
Anterior
Front
Posterior
Back
Vertebra
Bones that make up the spine
How many bones make up the spine?
24
Vertebra stacked on top of one another are called
the spinal column
The body’s main upright support is the
spinal column
How many vertebra make up the cervical spine?
- Often referred to as c1 - c7
What does the bottom of the skull connect to?
c1 or atlas
Which direction does the cervical spine curve?
Slightly inward
Where does the cervical spine end?
Where c7 joins the top of the thoracic spine
What sits on top of c1 or atlas?
The base of the skull
What forms a hole through the center of the atlas?
Two thick boney arches
Why is the opening the largest in the atlas
Because the spinal cord is wider where it first exits the brain
Where does the atlas sit?
On top of the c2 also referred to as the axis
What is the boney nob on top of the axis called?
the dens. it points up and fits through a hole in the atlas
What gives the neck its ability to turn to the left and right?
The special connection between the atlas and axis
What is the main part of each cervical vertebra?
A round block of bone called the vertebral body
What attaches to the back of the vertebral body?
A bone ring formed by to pedicles that connect to the back of the vertebral body and two lamina that join the pedicles to complete the ring
What do the vertebra form when stacked on top of one another?
A hollow tube that surrounds the spinal cord. The inside of this tube is called the spinal canal
What do the bone rings provide?
A protective roof that protects the spinal cord
What projects posteriorly from the same point where the two lamina bones join together at the back of the spine?
Boney projections called spinous processes. These are what you feel when you rub your fingers up and down the back of your spine
What are the two boney knobs that point out to the side from the vertebra?
Transverse Processes
What passes through the transverse processes of the cervical spine and is unique to the cervical spine?
Transverse foramen
What does the transverse foramen provide?
A passageway for arteries that run up each side of the neck to supply the back of the brain with blood
What are between each set of vertebra?
two joints called facet joints
What covers the surface of the facet joints?
Articular cartilage, a smooth rubbery material that covers the ends of most joints. It allows the ends of the bones to move together smoothly with minimal friction.
What is formed when vertebra are stacked on top of one another?
Neural foramen
What leaves through the neural foramen?
A nerve root leaves through this opening. One on the left and one on the right
What does the spinal cord travel through?
The spinal cord travels through the spinal canal
Where do the nerve roots from the cervical spine go?
The upper extremities, upper body and certain organs
What are ligaments?
Strong connective tissues that connect bones to other bones
Anterior Longitudinal Ligament
Runs lengthwise down the front of the vertebral bodies
Posterior Longitudinal Ligament
Attaches on the back of the vertebral bodies
Ligamentum Flavum
a long elastic band that connects to the front surface of each of the lamina bones
What are facet joints surrounded by
a joint capsule that is made up of ligaments
Intervertebral disc
A special structure in the spine that sits between each pair of vertebra
What two parts make up the intervertebral disc?
the nucleus pulposus annulus fibrosis
What is the nucleus pulposus
A spongy material that sits in the middle of the intervertebral disc and provides most of the shock absorption for the spine
What is the annulus fibrosis?
A series of strong ligamentous rings that surround the pulposus annulus fibrosis that attach to the vertebra above and below the intervertebral disc
What is a spinal segment?
Two vertebra separated by an intervertebral disc, two nerve roots, two small facet joints that link each level of the spinal column
How does the cervical spine bend and rotate?
The working together of the facet joints and the intervertebral disc. The facet joints slide while the intervertebral disc works like a flexible disc between the two vertebra
What is the cervical spine?
A complex machine with an important job to do.
How can you understand how problems in the neck can cause pain and disfunction?
By understanding the structure and function
