WK1: Axial Skeleton Flashcards
What makes up the axial skeleton?
Skull, vertebral column and thoracic cage
What are the 4 sutures of the brain?
Coronal, sagittal, lambdoid and squamosal
In a newborn baby, what are the 2 junctions that are present in their skull?
Anterior and posterior fontanelle
What is the role of the anterior and posterior fontanelle?
Allows the bones to overlap during childbirth, making it easier for the babies head to fit through the birth canal
What are the skull’s fossas?
Anterior, middle and posterior fossa
What makes up the vertebral column?
7 cervical vertebrae, 12 thoracic vertebrae and 5 lumbar vertebrae. Following is the sacrum, consisting of 5 vertebrae fused together and the coccyx (about 4 fused vertebrae).
What are the primary and secondary curvatures?
Primary curvatures are the thoracic and sacral curvatures.
Secondary curvatures are the cervical and lumbar vertebrae
When does the secondary curvatures develop?
The cervical curvature develops when the baby begins lifting their head.
The lumbar vertebrae develops when a baby is learning to walk
What are the 2 vertebrae’s that are distinct from the vertebral column?
C1 (atlas) and C2 (axis)
What are key features that make C1 and C2 distinct?
C1 has no vertebral body or spinous process. C2 has no vertebral body, but a heavy spinous process and a dens process.
How does the C1 and C2 vertebra articulate with each other to provide movement/rotation of the head?
C1 articulates with the occipital condyles of the occiput bone of the skull (connecting the skull to the neck) - creating a occipital-atlanto joint, with movements primarily being flexion and extension (yes).
C2 contains a dens process that articulates superiorly with the anterior arch of C1. This creates a pivot and collar joint, in which rotational movements of the head can be done. In this case, the dens process permits a pivoting motion allowing for greater range of motions laterally (no)
As we get lower down the vertebral column, why does the vertebral bodies become thicker and larger?
The lower section of the vertebral column (lumbar area) is bearing a lot weight from the body, hence it needs to be more stable and sturdy. Hence why there is less rotation/movement in the lumbar region.
In our thoracic cage, what are the true ribs (7)?
True ribs have costal cartilages that directly connect them to the sternum
What are false ribs (8-10)?
False ribs are not directly attached to the sternum, instead they are attached to the 7th rib by the costal cartilage which is then joined to the sternum
What are floating ribs (11-12)?
Ribs that are not attached to the sternum and are half the size of the others.
