Skeletal System Anatomy
The skeletal system in an adult body is made up of 206 individual
bones. These bones are arranged into two major divisions: the axial
skeleton and the appendicular skeleton. The axial skeleton runs
along the body’s midline axis and is made up of 80 bones in the
following regions:
Skull
Hyoid
Auditory ossicles
Ribs
Sternum
Vertebral column
The appendicular skeleton is made up of 126 bones in the folowing
regions:
Upper limbs
Lower limbs
Pelvic girdle
Pectoral (shoulder) girdle
Skull
The skull is composed of 22 bones that are fused together except
for the mandible. These 21 fused bones are separate in children to
allow the skull and brain to grow, but fuse to give added strength
and protection as an adult. The mandible remains as a movable jaw
bone and forms the only movable joint in the skull with
the temporal bone.
The bones of the superior portion of the skull are known as the
cranium and protect the brain from damage. The bones of the
inferior and anterior portion of the skull are known as facial bones
and support the eyes, nose, and mouth.
Hyoid and Auditory Ossicles
The hyoid is a small, U-shaped bone found just inferior to the
mandible. The hyoid is the only bone in the body that does not form
a joint with any other bone—it is a floating bone. The hyoid’s
function is to help hold the trachea open and to form a bony
connection for the tongue muscles.
The malleus, incus, and stapes—known collectively as the auditory
ossicles—are the smallest bones in the body. Found in a small
cavity inside of the temporal bone, they serve to transmit and
amplify sound from the eardrum to the inner ear.
Vertebrae
Twenty-six vertebrae form the vertebral column of the human
body. They are named by region:
Cervical (neck) - 7 vertebrae
Thoracic (chest) - 12 vertebrae
Lumbar (lower back) - 5 vertebrae
Sacrum - 1 vertebra
Coccyx (tailbone) - 1 vertebra
With the exception of the singular sacrum and coccyx, each vertebra
is named for the first letter of its region and its position along the
superior-inferior axis. For example, the most superior thoracic
vertebra is called T1 and the most inferior is called T12.
Ribs and Sternum
The sternum, or breastbone, is a thin, knife-shaped bone located
along the midline of the anterior side of the thoracic region of the
skeleton. The sternum connects to the ribs by thin bands of
cartilage called the costal cartilage.
There are 12 pairs of ribs that together with the sternum form the
ribcage of the thoracic region. The first seven ribs are known as
“true ribs” because they connect the thoracic vertebrae directly to
the sternum through their own band of costal cartilage. Ribs 8, 9,
and 10 all connect to the sternum through cartilage that is
connected to the cartilage of the seventh rib, so we consider these
to be “false ribs.” Ribs 11 and 12 are also false ribs, but are also
considered to be “floating ribs” because they do not have any
cartilage attachment to the sternum at all.
Pectoral Girdle and Upper Limb
The pectoral girdle connects the upper limb (arm) bones to the
axial skeleton and consists of the left and right clavicles and left and
right scapulae.
