Chap 7&8: Skeletal Anatomy and Joints

• Divisions of the skeletal system

  1. Axial: skull, auditory ossicles, hyoid bone, vertebral column, thoracic cage

  2. Appendicular: Upper & lower limbs; girdles (pectoral and pelvic)
• Average adult skeleton consists of 206 bones
• Categorization of bones

  • Paired and unpaired
• Skeletal System


  The framework that helps maintain the body’s shape and enables movement, composed of bones, cartilage, and ligaments
• Male vs Female Pelvis

  • Male pelvis is usually more massive due to greater weight and size of the male body
  • Female pelvis is broader and has a larger, more rounded pelvic inlet and outlet, important during childbirth
• Cartilaginous Joint

  • Unites two bones by means of hyaline cartilage or fibrocartilage
  • Exhibits little or no movement
• Joint


  A place where two or more bones come together
• Types of joints

  • Fibrous
  • Cartilaginous
  • Synovial
• Fibrous Joint


  • Connection between two bones united by fibrous connective tissue
  • No joint cavity
  • Little or no movement
• Synovial Joint


  • Freely movable joints containing synovial fluid in a cavity surrounding the ends of articulating bones
  • Synovial fluid coats and lubricates articular cartilage
• Types of Movement

  1. Gliding movements occur in plane joints between 2 flat surfaces

  2. Angular movements involve changes in the angle between the bones

  3. Circular movements involve rotation around an axis

  4. Special movements are unique to only one or two joints

  5. Combination movements are combinations of other movements
• Female pelvis


  Broader and has a larger, more rounded pelvic inlet and outlet, important during childbirth
• Shapes of Synovial Joints

  • Plane
  • Saddle
  • Hinge
  • Pivot
  • Ball-and-socket
  • Ellipsoid
• Movements beyond normal range can cause dislocations and sprains
• Range of motion describes the amount of mobility that can be demonstrated in a given joint
• Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) is a combination of plane and ellipsoid joint, with the ellipsoid portion predominating
• what are the bones in axial division

  skull, auditory ossicles, vertebral column, hyoid bone, rib cage
• immovable joints connecting cranial bones

  sutures
• only bone with no direct bony attachment

  hyoid bone
• hyoid bone functions

  attachment point for tongue muscles, neck muscles that elevate larynx (speech and swallowing)
• major curvatures

  cervical anterior, thoracic posterior, lumbar anterior, sacral and coccygeal posterior