UNIT II

SKELETAL SYSTEM
FUNCTIONS
SUPPORT
PROTECTION
MOVEMENT
STORAGE
BONE CELL FORMAION
 SUPPORT
Form the internal framework that supports and
anchors all soft organs. Bones, the “steel
girders” and “reinforced concrete” of the body.
The backbone is the main support center for
the upper body. It holds your head up and
protects your spinal cord.
Example:
The bones of the legs act as pillars to support
the body trunk when we stand and the rib cage
supports the thoracic wall.
 PROTECTION
Bones protect soft body organs from injuries.

Example
The fused bones of the skull provide a snug
enclosure for the brain allowing one to head a
soccer ball without worrying about injuring the
brain.
The vertebrae surround the spinal cord, and the rib
cage helps to protect the vital organs of the thorax.
 MOVEMENT
Skeletal muscles attached to bones by tendons,
use the bones as levers to move the body and its
parts. The bones and joints work with muscles to
enable us to walk, run and sprint. The vertebrae
allow us to bend, stretch and rotate our body

As a result we can walk, swim, throw a ball,

breath and many more.
 STORAGE
Fat is stored in the internal
cavities of the bones. Bone
itself serves as storehouse for
minerals, the most important
being is calcium and
phosphorus, although others
are also stored.
 BLOOD CELL FORMATION
Blood cell formation or
known as “hematopoiesis”,
occurs within the marrow
cavities of certain bones.
CLASSIFICATIONS
TWO BASIC TYPES OF OSSEOUS/BONES

Compact bone -is a dense and looks

smooth and homogenous.
Spongy bone –is composed of small
needlelike pieces of bone and lots of
open space.
 LONG BONES
Typically longer than they are wide. As a rule they have
a shaft with heads at both ends. All the bones of the
limbs except the wrist and ankle bones are long bones
Long bones mostly compact bone

Examples:
Femur, humerus , arms, legs, fingers, toes
 SHORT BONES
Are generally cube-
shaped
Contain mostly spongy
bone

Examples
Wrist, ankle
 SESAMOID BONE
Form within tendons, special type of short
bone.

Example:
Patella/kneecap
 FLAT BONES
Are thin flattened and usually curved.
Enclose and protect organs.
They have two thin layer of compact
bone.

Examples:
sternum, ribs, most skull bones, scapula
 IRREGULAR BONES
Bones that do not fit one of
the preceding categories.
The vertebrae, which make up
the spinal column, and the hip
bones fall into this group.
 AXIAL SKELETON
forms the longitudinal axis of the body.
Supports and protects organs of head, neck and
trunk. And it is divided into four parts:
-Skull
-Hyoid bone
-Vertebral column
-Bony thorax/thoracic cage
 SKULL
Is formed by two sets of bones: the cranium and facial bones.
Bones are joined by sutures.
Cranium encloses and protects the fragile brain tissue. Cranium is
composed of: Frontal Bone, Parietal Bones, Temporal Bones,
Occipital Bone, Sphenoid Bone, Ethmoid Bone.
Facial bones hold the eyes in an anterior position and allow the
facial muscles to show our feelings ( smiling, frowning). It
composed of: Maxillary Bones, Palatine Bones, Zygomatic Bones,
Lacrimal Bones, Nasal Bones, Vomer Bones, Inferior Nasal
Conchae, Mandible.
The Skull

Figure 5.7

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 19

Parietal Bone
cranium Parietal Bone

Frontal Bone

Temporal
Occipital Bone
Bone

20
 HYOID BONE
Though it is not really part of the
skull, he hyoid bone is closely related
to he mandible and temporal bones.
Is unique in that it is the only one
bone of thee body that does not
articulate directly with any other
bone.
 VERTEBRAL COLUMN (SPINE)
Extend from the skull which it supports, to the pelvis, where
it transmits the weight of the body to the lower limbs.
It composed of:
7 cervical vertebrae
12 thoracic vertebrae
5 lumbar vertebrae
5 fused sacrum vertebrae
4 fused coccyx
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 BONY THORAX
Also known as thoracic cage/rib cage
because it forms a protective, cone-shaped
cage of slender bones around the organs of
the thoracic cavity (heart, lungs, and blood
vessels). It is composed of: Sternum, Ribs.
 Sternum
(Breastbone)

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Rib Cage
True ribs are directly
attached to the sternum
(first seven pairs)

Three false ribs are

joined to the 7th rib

Two pairs of floating ribs

APPENDICULAR SKELETON
Bones of limbs ( ARMS AND LEGS) and bones that anchor them
to the axial skeleton.
It is composed of 126 bones of the limbs and the pectoral and
pelvic girdles, which attach the limbs to the axial skeleton.
Composed of clavicle and scapula
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 APPENDICULAR SKELETON
Bones of the upper limb

Arm -the arm is a single bone, the humerus

which is typical long bone
Forearm –composed of two bones the
radius (lateral bone) and the ulna (medial
bone)
Hand –consists or carpals (the wrist),
metacarpals (palm of the hand) and
phalanges (bones of the fingers).
 APPENDICULAR SKELETON
Bones of the pelvic girdle
- formed by two coxal bones commonly called “hip
bones”

 Ilium –large, flaring bone that form most of the hip bone
 Ischium –is the sit down bone since forms the most
inferior part of the coxal bone
 Pubis –most anterior part of the coxal bone
The Pelvis

Figure 5.23a

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 32

Male Pelvic Girdle Female Pelvic Girdle
 APPENDICULAR SKELETON
Bones of the lower limbs

Thigh –femur, is the only bone in the thigh

Leg –two bones the tibia and the fibula
Foot –composed tarsals, metatarsals and
phalanges
-has two important functions, supports
the body weight and serves as a lever that allow
us to propel our bodies forward when we walk or
run.
JOINTS
 JOINTS
Also called “articulations”
It is classified into two ways, functionally
and structurally
Have two functions
-hold the bones securely
-give the rigid skeleton mobility
 JOINTS
FIBROUS JOINTS
Also called synarthroses
Immovable joints
The joints are united by
fibrous tissue
The best example is the
suture of the skull
 JOINTS
CARTILAGINOUS JOINTS
Also called amphiarthroses
Slightly movable joints
The bone end are
connected by cartilage
Example of this is pubic
symphysis and internal
vertebral joints
 JOINTS
SYNOVIAL JOINTS
Also called diarthroses
Freely movable joints
Are those in which the
articulating bones end are
seperated by a joint cavity
containing synovial fluid.
MOVEMENT
 FLEXION AND EXTENSION
Flexion and extension are movements that take place
within the sagittal plane and involve anterior or
posterior movements of the body or limbs. For the
vertebral column, flexion (anterior flexion) is an anterior
(forward) bending of the neck or body, while extension
involves a posterior-directed motion, such as
straightening from a flexed position or bending
backward.
ABDUCTION AND ADDUCTION
Abduction and adduction motions occur within
the coronal plane and involve medial-lateral
motions of the limbs, fingers, toes, or thumb.
Abduction moves the limb laterally away from
the midline of the body, while adduction is the
opposing movement that brings the limb toward
the body or across the midline.
 CIRCUMDUCTION
Circumduction is the movement of a
body region in a circular manner, in
which one end of the body region being
moved stays relatively stationary while
the other end describes a circle.
 ROTATION
Rotation can occur within the vertebral
column, at a pivot joint, or at a ball-and-
socket joint. Rotation of the neck or body
is the twisting movement produced by the
summation of the small rotational
movements available between adjacent
vertebrae.
SUPINATION AND PRONATION
Supination and pronation are movements of the
forearm. In the anatomical position, the upper
limb is held next to the body with the palm facing
forward. This is the supinated position of the
forearm. In this position, the radius and ulna are
parallel to each other. When the palm of the hand
faces backward, the forearm is in the pronated
position, and the radius and ulna form an X-shape.
DORSIFLEXION AND PLANTAR FLEXION

Dorsiflexion and plantar flexion are

movements at the ankle joint, which is a
hinge joint. Lifting the front of the foot, so
that the top of the foot moves toward the
anterior leg is dorsiflexion, while lifting the
heel of the foot from the ground or pointing
the toes downward is plantar flexion.
INVERSION AND EVERSION
Inversion is the turning of the foot to
angle the bottom of the foot toward the
midline, while eversion turns the bottom
of the foot away from the midline. The
foot has a greater range of inversion than
eversion motion.
PROTRACTION AND RETRACTION
Protraction of the scapula occurs when
the shoulder is moved forward, as when
pushing against something or throwing a
ball. Retraction is the opposite motion,
with the scapula being pulled posteriorly
and medially, toward the vertebral
column.
DEPRESSION AND ELEVATION
Depression and elevation are downward
and upward movements of the scapula
or mandible. The upward movement of
the scapula and shoulder is elevation,
while a downward movement is
depression.
 EXCURSION
Excursion is the side to side movement of
the mandible.
 Synovial Joint Movement
Extension

Rotation
Flexion

Adduction
Abduction