Ankle joint. Anatomy and pathology: bones and ligaments of the foot

February 28, 2012

The bones of the human skeleton grow, change and age along with the body. How to keep them strong and healthy?

Bones are the basis of the human skeleton

, which maintains the shape of the body and helps it move. At birth, a baby's skeleton consists of more than 300 bones. With age, some of them grow together. By about age 25, a person has only 206 bones left. Bones grow, change and age along with the body. How to keep them strong and healthy?

Why are bones needed?

The skeleton gives the body its shape and serves as the basis for the attachment of muscles, ligaments and tendons, which together with the bones create the body's motor system.
Prevention of osteoporosis

How much calcium is needed, how it is absorbed, and how dancing improves bone health, we will tell you in a special material.

In addition, bones
protect the internal organs
of the body. For example, the ribs create a shield around the lungs, heart and liver. And the spine protects the spinal cord and maintains the vertical position of the body.

Characteristics of the thoracic region

The peculiarity of this area is its unusual shape, it resembles the letter “C”. This position is anatomically correct and is called kyphosis. In this place, the vertebrae are connected to the ribs; the department participates in the formation of the chest. Of all the other areas, this is the least mobile; because of this, pathological processes develop here less frequently than in other places. The distance between individual segments is minimal. The main task of the skeleton in this place is to protect the heart, lungs and other vital organs from any negative influences.

Vertebrae are short bones with a sponge-like structure. They are connected to each other by discs made of dense cartilage tissue. A distinctive feature of the segments in this part of the ridge is the presence of rib notches; in addition, there are other unusual details:

The first vertebra deserves special attention; it has a full articular fossa in its body, through which articulation is achieved with the head of the first rib; on its lower part there is a half-fossa for the head of the second rib.
The tenth vertebra has only one semi-fossa on top.
On the 11th and 12th vertebrae there is only one complete articular fossa.

The spinal canal in the thoracic region is narrower than in other regions, so the appearance of any diseases or neoplasms leads to pinching. Symptoms are always pronounced, which simplifies the diagnosis process.

The thoracic region consists of 12 vertebrae, designated by the letter D, the numbers sequential from top to bottom. The load on the segments in this area is quite large, due to the close location of the respiratory organs. Damage is very dangerous, as it leads to serious failures of internal organs.

What are bones made of?

Most bones have four main parts.
More movement - and retirement

Retirement age is not a reason to give up physical activity. Alexey Korochkin, a researcher at the Department of Exercise Therapy and Sports Medicine of the Russian State Medical University, tells how to properly engage in physical education at an older age.

The outer part of the bone is called
the periosteum
.
This is a thin but very dense layer in which the nerves and blood vessels that feed the bones are located. Dense bone substance
is very smooth and heavy.
Most of it is in the middle of the long tubular bones. Spongy bone substance
consists of thin plates that connect to each other and form many cavities.
The heads of bones are made of this substance. It also fills the spaces in flat bones - for example, ribs. The internal cavities of the bones are lined with bone marrow
. The most common is yellow or fatty bone marrow, which is most often found in long bones. Flat bones are dominated by red bone marrow, which produces new blood cells for the body.

In adults ↑

There are many mysteries in the adult body.

Every fifth person has deviations in the number of vertebrae in the lumbar and cervical regions, and every twentieth person has an extra rib.

In some people, some of the bones heal over time, and in others, they do not. The sacrum in most cases consists of five fused vertebrae, but scientists have not agreed whether to count it as five bones or one.

For now, it’s worth accepting the statement that an adult has about two hundred bones: the two most likely numbers are 206 and 207.

Differences in the number of bones are not always congenital.

During the formation of the skeleton, the number of its bones may change due to a decrease in the number of cervical vertebrae to six due to the fact that the seventh cervical vertebra can be assimilated by the thoracic vertebra.

The number of thoracic vertebrae can be reduced to eleven, and the lumbar vertebrae increased to six or decreased to four.

One of the effective ways to treat diseases of the musculoskeletal system is manual therapy.

Read also…. Pinched nerve in the lower back

You can find out more information in the article about what spinal manual therapy is.

Another proven method of treating diseases of the joints and spine is the Kuznetsov applicator. In what cases it can be used, find out here.

How does bone tissue live?

Bones are constantly changing: new cells appear in them and old ones are destroyed. When a person is young, his body produces new bone tissue faster than the old one is destroyed. This increases bone mass
.
Most people reach peak bone mass by age 30
.
As a person gets older, bone regeneration continues, but at a slower rate than bone loss. The more bone mass was accumulated at a young age
, the slower its loss occurs - the development of osteoporosis.

Interesting facts ↑

Scientists have learned to reconstruct the faces of long-dead people using skull bones. Previously, this was done using clay, but now computer graphics are used.

Thanks to this, we can find out what our ancestors looked like. But it turns out that the bones of the skeleton can tell a lot more.

Age determination

Forensic experts determine age by the degree of ossification of bone cartilage:

At the age of 15, the formation of the foot ends;
at 25 years old, the sternum fuses with the collarbone;
By the age of 40, 75% of the skull bones have fused.
The pelvic bone in a child consists of three bones with a cartilaginous layer, and by the age of 15-16 they fuse into one.

These signs do not allow us to give an absolutely accurate answer. In addition to them, there are other age-related features of the human skeleton.

Modern archaeologists and anthropologists use R. Martin’s scheme that defines age categories.

1. Children's age:

early childhood - before the appearance of the first permanent teeth (6-8 years);
late childhood - before the appearance of permanent second molars, or before the onset of puberty (from 6-8 to 12-14 years).

2. Adolescence - until the sphenoid-occipital suture heals, that is, from 12-14 to 20-22 years.

3. Age of maturity - from the appearance of the third permanent molars and the beginning of healing of the cranial sutures to the average wear of the teeth (from 20-22 to 30-35 years).

4. Mature age with an average degree of healing of cranial sutures and severe wear of teeth (from 30-35 to 50-55 years).

5. Old age with complete healing of cranial sutures and severe wear and loss of teeth (from 50-55 years).

The age of adolescents and children is determined with an accuracy of up to a year by the timing of skeletal ossification, timing of teething and bone size.

With normal development:

from 2-3 months the anterior crown of the skull closes;
by 1.5 - 2 years the posterior crown is closed, the metopic suture is still preserved on the frontal bone, and the milk teeth have just erupted or have not yet fully erupted;
a more accurate age of the baby is determined by the number of erupted baby teeth;
by 3-6 years the first molar appears and all parts of the spinal column grow together;
from 7-8 to 12-14 years, most of the teeth erupt;
by the age of 14-16, the three pelvic bones fuse into one;
by 15-18 years, the lower thickened end of the humerus and the upper thickened ends of the ulna and radius merge with the body of the bone;
by the age of 17-20, the head and lower thickened end of the tibia fuse with the body of the bone;
by the age of 24-25, the formation of the skeleton as a whole is completed, and in women this process ends earlier than in men.

The biological age of an adult is determined with an accuracy of five years. This takes into account the timing of hardening of cranial sutures, wear of teeth, age-related changes in the skeleton (dorsal vertebrae, heads of humerus, etc.).

Each individual sign gives a significant spread in determining age, but the combination of various signs allows this figure to be made more accurate.

What affects bone health?

There are factors that contribute to the destruction of bones that a person cannot influence: gender, age, heredity and various diseases. However, bone health largely depends on a person's lifestyle
: 1.
The amount of calcium in the diet
.
A diet low in calcium contributes to decreased bone density, early bone loss, and an increased risk of fractures. 2. Level of physical activity
.
People who lead a sedentary lifestyle have lower bone density and a higher risk of fractures. Active movement, on the contrary, promotes the growth of bone tissue cells. 3. Tobacco and alcohol use
.
Ethanol and nicotine impair the body's absorption of calcium and contribute to bone destruction. 4. Eating behavior
.
People who eat unbalanced diets or have anorexia or bulimia are at risk of bone loss. 5. Excess salt
.
Excess sodium in the diet can promote calcium loss from bone tissue. 6. Abuse of sweet soda
. To balance the excess phosphates entering the body with “fizzy drink”, calcium is washed out of the bones.

Features of the sacrococcygeal region

The sacrum and coccyx vertebrae are fused with each other, so the sections, although divided conditionally, are closely connected. The main task of this area is the protection of internal systems located in the pelvis. In women, it is involved in reproductive function, being responsible for childbirth. Thanks to the mobility of the tailbone, the human body is able to freely bend forward and make turns, and sit on a flat surface. The sacrum remains motionless all the time; its shape resembles a bit of a triangle or an inverted pyramid.

The appearance of the vertebra in the sacrum resembles a small wedge that continues the lumbar region and forms the coccyx. The section consists of three or five bones, depending on the individual characteristics of the body.

A visual representation of the structure of the coccyx and sacrum

The difference between different departments is very noticeable even when viewed from a distance, but they all act synchronously, as a single whole, ensuring body mobility and normal physical activity.

Interesting! Some scientists believe that the sacrum is a remnant reminiscent of the existence of a tail in humans. Others find no basis for such a theory.

How to keep bones healthy?

1. Include a sufficient amount of calcium-containing foods in your diet: dairy products, broccoli, fish, soy products. If your dietary habits do not allow you to get enough calcium, consult your doctor - he will prescribe a vitamin complex. 2. Get enough vitamin D. It can be found in oily fish and egg yolk. 3. Incorporate physical activity into your daily schedule. Running, walking, climbing stairs - these activities reduce bone loss
. They also improve coordination and balance, which helps prevent falls and broken bones. 4. Avoid alcohol and nicotine. 5. Limit your intake of salt and sugary soda. Eat a healthy, balanced diet rich in protein, an important building material for bone tissue. Find out how to choose protein and how much salt you can afford without compromising your health.

In children ↑

At birth, the number of bones in a child is also determined differently.

Most doctors believe that there are 300 of them, but there are also those who believe that there are 270 and 350.

With this, everything is clearer - the baby’s bones are very small, and all that remains is to agree on what size to count them from. But it's not that simple.

Babies are born with different weights, and a premature baby may have bones much smaller than the minimum limit. Of course, we can agree that the number of bones in a baby weighing 3 kg and height 50 centimeters is taken as the standard, but this will also have a large share of convention.

Taking all factors into account, scientists estimate the approximate number of bones of a newborn baby to be 300.

Over the course of several weeks, the baby's embryo develops a rudimentary tail of individual bones, which then grow together and become the coccyx.

At birth, the baby's bones are flexible and soft, otherwise the baby could not be born. During the intrauterine period, the cartilaginous skeleton of the fetus gradually turns into a bone one. This process continues for several years after birth.

Figure: child's skull

As the child grows, some of the small bones grow together until the number reaches 206 or 207 bones. This fusion takes different times for different bones.

The bones of the baby’s skull are not fused and the “fontanelles” between them, consisting of connective tissue, are overgrown with bone tissue by about two years.

The vertebrae of the sacrum fuse completely into a single bone only by the age of 18-25.

The most important

Bones are the basis of the human skeleton.
They allow the body to move and maintain a constant shape. Over time, bone mass is lost and osteoporosis develops. To keep your bones healthy for as long as possible, you need to eat a balanced diet, move a lot and give up bad habits. Illustration: Ajari Photo Tags:

Prevention
Bone
Calcium
Osteoporosis
Bones

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