Thoracic Wall - Osteology Flashcards
Describe the osteology of thoracic vertebrae:
Body -
Vertebral foramen - spinal nerves exit spinal cord
Laminae - help form foramen
Articular processes;
- Superior articular and inferior articular process
- form the facet joints with the adjacent vertebrae,
- allow for limited movement
Transverse process - articulate with the ribs, providing support and serving as attachment points for muscles, long and project laterally
Spinous process - long, narrow, and slope downward
Pedicle - help form foramen
Describe the osteology of sternum
Manubrium
- articulates with the clavicles at the sternoclavicular joints
- jugular/ suprasternal notch, dip at the top between calvicles
Body:
- costal notches on either side where it articulates with the cartilage of ribs 2 through 7.
Xiphoid process:
- attachment point for abdominal muscles
Anterior to the mediastinum
Articulation site for costal cartilage
Describe the osteology of typical ribs:
Ribs 3-9
Head - has two articular facets and articulates with the corresponding vertebrae, and
the vertebrae above
Neck - has a facet to articulate with the transverse process of the corresponding vertebrae
Body - thin/flattened and curved. Presence of a costal groove for the neurovasculature on internal surface
Ring shaped with costal cartilage at end
Describe the osteology of atypical ribs:
Ribs 1, 2, 10, 11 and 12
Rib 1 - shorter and wider than any other, only has 1 facet for articulation with corresponding vertebrae
Rib 2 - longer and thinner than 1, 2 articular facets on head
Rib 10 - only has one facet for articulation with its
numerically corresponding vertebrae
Rib 11 + 12 - have no neck (and so no tubercle), and only
contain one facet
Describe costovertebral and intervertebral joints:
Costovertebral:
- Costocorporeal connect head of each rib to the bodies of the adjacent thoracic vertebrae
- Costotransverse connect the tubercle of each rib to the transverse process of its corresponding vertebra
- synovial planar joints
Intervertebral joints:
- secondary cartilaginous joints
- Facet connects superior and inferior articular processes of adjacent vertebrae
- Intervertebral Symphyses connects bodies of adjacent vertebra
What are the joints of the thorax in sternum ?
Sternoclavicular:
- connects clavicle and sternum at the manubrium
- synovial, saddle-type join
Sternochondral;
- between the costal cartilages of the ribs and the sternum
- connect true ribs to the sternum
- 1st SJ is primary cartilaginous and rest are synovial plane plane joints
Manubriosternal:
- secondary cartilaginous joint
- Found at the sternal angle, where the manubrium meets the body of the sternum
Costachondral:
- primary cartilaginous joint
- Located where each rib meets its costal cartilage
Xiphisternal:
- junction between the body of the sternum and the xiphoid process
- primary cartilaginous joint
Interchondral:
- Found between the costal cartilages of ribs 6 through 10
- synovial plane joints
What are the thoracic openings ?
Superior Thoracic Aperture;
- Bounded by the manubrium, 1st ribs and associated costal
cartilages and T1 vertebrae
Inferior Thoracic Aperture:
- Bounded by the xiphoid process, the costal margin, ribs 11 and 12 and T12 vertebrae
- closed by the diaphragm
What are the body cavities in the thoracic cavity ?
Thoracic cavity is subdivided into pulmonary spaces and mediastinum
Contains 3 pleural spaces - 2 pleural cavities and a pericardial cavity
Visceral pleura- lines lungs
Parietal pleura - lines walls
Define vestigial
A vestigial structure refers to a remnant of an organ or structure that was fully functional in ancestral forms but has reduced function or significance in the present
What is transverse thoracic plane ?
transverse thoracic plane divides the mediastinum into superior and inferior parts, which is its main clinical significance
beginning and end of the aortic arch or the superior vena cava entering the right atrium
transverse thoracic plane is at the level of T4/T5 on the vertebral column.
