Axial Skeleton

BIO211L ~ Anatomy & Physiology

Axial Skeleton

The bones that surround the longitudinal axis of the body

Frontal Bone

Forehead/front of the skull

Supraorbital foramen

Small holes above each orbit

Supraorbital Margin

Upper ridge of the orbit

Parietal Bones (2)

Top of the skull

Coronal suture

Between the frontal bone and parietal bones

Sagittal suture

Divides the right and left parietal bones

Squamous sutures (2)

Between each parietal bone and temporal bone

Lambdoid suture

between the parietal bones and the occipital bone

Temporal Bones (2)

The side of the skull by the ears

Zygomatic process

projection from the temporal bone towards the zygomatic bone

Zygomatic arch of temporal bone

formed by the zygomatic and temporal processes fusing together

Mandibular fossa

indentation on the underside of the mandible

External acoustic meatus

The bony portion of the ear canal

Styloid process

a sharp, slender projection at the bottom of the skull next to the mastoid process

Mastoid process

a mounded projection on the bottom of the skull next to the styloid process

Stylomastoid foramen

An opening between the styloid and mastoid processes

Jugular foramen

A big jagged opening medial to the stylomastoid foramen - allows the jugular vein to pass through the skull to the brain

Carotid canal (foramen)

The circular hole above the jugular foramen - allows the carotid artery to pass through to the brain

Internal acoustic meatus

small bony portion of the inner ear

Foramen lacerum

best viewed with foramina of the sphenoid bone

Occipital Bone

The back/base of the skull

Foramen magnum

The big hole in the center of the occipital bone - acts as a passageway for the spinal chord,, which becomes the braan stem when it reached the brain

Occipital condyle

Rockers on cervical vertebra 1 around the foramen magnum

Hypoglossal canal

An opening underneath the occipital condyle

External occipital protuberance

A small bump at the very back of the skull

Ethmoid bone

The interior skull floor

Crista galli

An upward projection for the cribriform plate

Cribriform plate

the flat part of the ethmoid bone in the skull floor

Olfactory foramina

Tint holes on the surface of the cribriform plate

Perpendicular plate

The upper bony septum in the nasal cavity that separates left and right

Superior nasal conchae

Lateral bony projections in the nasal cavity (not tagable)

Middle nasal conchae

Later bony projections in the upper area of the nasal cavity

Sphenoid bone

Greater wings

Lesser wings

Lateral Pterygoid process

A lateral bony projection seen from the roof of the mouth (yellow area)

Medial Pterygoid process

A medial bony projection seen from the roof of the mouth (yellow area)

Inferior orbital fissue

small v-shaped fissure in the orbit (inferior)

Superior orbital fissure

small v-shaped fissure in the orbit (superior)

Sella turcica

“turkish saddle” - central area that holds the pituitary gland

Dorsum sellae

The raised back of the sella turcica

Hypophyseal fossa

An indent in the sella turcica (saddle part)

Optic canal

2 holes anterior to the sella turcica that the optic nerves pass through

Foramen ovale

oval shaped openings in the sphenoid bone

Foramen lacrum

large opening in sphenoid bone

Foramen spinosum

small opening in sphenoid bone

Foramen rotunda

round opening in the sphenoid bone

Mandible

the jaw bone

Mandibular ramus

the vertical portion of the mandible (2)

Mandibular body

The horizontal front of the mandible

Mandibular angle

The corner of the mandible between the ramus and body

Mandibular condyle

A process to the back of the ramus with a knob-like structure at the top

Coronoid process

A process to the front of the ramus

Mandibular notch

A u-shaped curve between the mandibular condyle and coronoid process

Mental foramen

small holes in the front of the mandible (mental region)

Alveolar process (mandible)

small raised areas between the teeth (lower)

Mandibular foramen

small holes on the interior surface of the mandible

Maxillae

Facial region of the skull

Infraorbital foramen

Small holes below the orbits

Alveolar process (maxillae)

Small raised areas between the teeth (upper)

Palatine process

A projection of the maxillae “palate”

Incisive fossa

A hole just behind the two front teeth

Palatine bone

The hard palate of the skull

Zygomatic bone

Cheek bone

Temporal process

A projection towards the temporal bone that fuses with the zygomatic process

Zygomatic arch of the zygomatic bone

The arch that joins the zygomatic and temporal processes

Lacrimal bone

The bones in the medial wall of the orbit - hold the tear glands and ducts

Vomer bone

A vertical bone in the nasal opening that comes up from the bottom of the nasal cavity

Inferior nasal concha

The lowest lateral projections in the nasal cavity

Nasal bone

A bone that forms the roof of the nasal cavity

Anterior fontanel (fetal skull)

The area between the frontal and parietal bones

Posterior fontanel (fetal skull)

The area between the parietal bones and the occipital bone

Hyoid bone

Small horseshoe shaped bone in front of the neck

Hyoid body

The body of the hyoid bone

Greater horns

large projections coming off the body of the hyoid bone

Lesser horns

small projections coming off the body of the hyoid bone

Vertebral column

The base of the occipital bone down to the coccyx

Vertebra

The bones that make up the vertebral column

Vertebral body

The bulky part of the vertebra

Vertebral foramen

The large opening posterior to the vertebral body - passage for the spinal cord

Spinous process

The long posterior projection off the vertebral body

Transverse processes (2)

two horizontal projections that the ribs attach to

Vertebral arch

The bony structure around the vertebral foramen

Pedicle of the vertebral arch

The foot of the vertebral arch

Laminae of the vertebral arch

The head of the vertebral arch

Superior articular process & facet

The upward projection that links with the vertebra above

Inferior articular process & facet

The downward projection that links with the vertebra below

Intervertebral foramen

The hole that is created when two vertebra link together

Cervical Vertebrae

The first 7 vertebra in the vertebral column

Transverse Foramina

Holes in the transverse processes in the cervical vertebra

Bifid spinous process

The spinous process on the cervical vertebrae are forked

Atlas (C1)

Anterior arch (C1)

the small flat arch on the anterior side of the C1 vertebra - anterior tubercle is the bump

Posterior arch (C1)

The wide rounded arch on the posterior side of the C1 vertebrae - posterior tubercle is the bump

Axis (C2)

Dens (odontoid process)

The upward projection of the C2 vertebrae that interacts with C1

Vertebra prominens (C7)

The long spinous process with less bifid

Thoracic Vertebrae

The middle 12 vertebrae that attach to the ribs - spinous process angles downward

Costal facets

facets on the transverse processes that the ribs attach to