The Skeletal System: Bone Types and Functions

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from a lecture on the skeletal system, bone types, and their functions.

Axial Skeleton

The bones that exist along an imaginary vertical axis of the body, including the skull, vertebral column, rib cage, and sternum.

Appendicular Skeleton

The bones of the limbs (arms and legs) and the bones within the girdles (pectoral and pelvic).

Pectoral Girdle

Also known as the shoulder girdle, includes the scapula (shoulder blade) and the clavicle (collarbone).

Pelvic Girdle

Also known as the hip girdle, includes the bones of the pelvis.

Long Bones

Bones that are much longer than they are wide; examples include the humerus, radius, ulna, femur, tibia, fibula, and the phalanges.

Short Bones

Bones that are just as wide as they are long; examples include the trapezoid in the wrist and some bones in the midfoot.

Flat Bones

Bones whose primary role is to offer protection; examples include the sternum and the frontal bone.

Irregular Bones

Bones that have an irregular shape and do not fall into any other category; examples include the vertebrae, ethmoid bone, and sphenoid bone.

Sesamoid Bone

A short bone found within a tendon; the most common example is the patella (kneecap).

Suture Bones

Small bones found within suture joints in the skull.

Tendons

Connective tissues by which skeletal muscles attach to the skeletal system.

Primary functions of the skeletal system

Blood production, mineral homeostasis, reservoir for calcium and phosphorus regulation.

Hemopoiesis

The production of all of our blood cells within the red bone marrow.

Erythropoiesis

The production of our red blood cells in the epiphyses of long bones.