Joints

A joint is the place where two or more bones come together.

There are three types of joints:

Fibrous joints

Synovial joints

Cartilaginous joints

Fibrous Joint
The bones are joined by fibrous connective tissue, such as in:

Skull sutures; temporary joints

Inferior tibiofibular joints; permanent joints

Gomphosis; dental and alveolar joints

These joints usually have no movement at all or very mild movement.

Cartilaginous Joint
The two bones are joined by cartilage.
They consist of two types:

Primary Cartilaginous

The bones are connected by a bar or plate of hyaline cartilage, these joints are
not permanent, they ossify later, and they do not move.
They are present between the epiphysis and diaphysis of growing bones and
between the first rib and the sternum.

Secondary Cartilaginous

The plates are united by a plate of fibrocartilage, their articulating surfaces are
covered by a thin layer of hyaline cartilage, there is little movement, these joints
are permanent.
They are present in the symphysis pubis and between the vertebral bodies.

Joints 1
 Secondary Cartilaginous:

Synovial Joint
The 2 bones are joint by a fibrous capsule that is attached to the ends of the
meeting surfaces, these joints are free moving, the articular surfaces are covered
by a thin layer of hyaline cartilage, There is a joint cavity enclosed within the
capsule, the capsule is lined with a thin vascular lining called the synovial
membrane, and the cavity contains synovial fluid, a lubricating fluid that
decreased the friction between the articular surfaces.

Joints 2
 Classification of the synovial joints
They are classified according to:

The arrangement of the articular surfaces

The range of movements that are possible

According to the range movements, they are classified into:

Plane synovial joints: The articulating surfaces are flat, and the bones slide on
one another creating a gliding movement. Examples include intercarpal joints,
sternoclavicular joints, and acromioclavicular joints.

Axial synovial joints:

Transverse: Flexion and extension occur

Longitudinal: Rotation occur

Antero-posterior: Abduction and adduction occur

Joints 3
 The axial joints are further divided into three categories:
Uniaxial synovial joints: Examples of transverse uniaxial joints are the elbow
and ankle joints. Examples of longitudinal uniaxial joints include the radio-
ulnar joints.

Biaxial synovial joints:

Ellipsoid joints: These form when and elliptical convex fits into an elliptical
concave shape. They are both transverse and antero-posterior (no rotation). An
example is the wrist.

Saddle joints: The articulating surfaces resemble a saddle on a horse's back,

movement s include flexion, extension, abduction, adduction and slight rotation.
An example is the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb.

Poly-axial synovial joints:

Ball-and-socket joints: A ball shaped head of a bone fits into a socket-like

concavity of another. Movements include flexion, extension, abduction, adduction
and rotation. Examples include the shoulder joint and the hip joint.

Stability of synovial joints

The factors that contribute to stability include:

The shape of the articular surfaces; the shape of the bones forming the ball-
and-socket joint of the hip is a good example of the shape contributing to
stability, on the other hand the shapes of the bones forming the knee joint do
not contribute to stabilty.

Strength of the ligaments; ligaments prevent excessive movement in a joint,

examples include the cruciate ligaments of the knee joint and the collateral
ligaments of the elbow.

Tone of the surrounding muscles; in most joints this is the most contributing
factor to the stability of the joint, for example, the short muscles in the
shoulder keep the head of the humerus in the shallow glenoid cavity.

Nerve supply to joints

The capsules and ligaments receive and abundance of sensory nerve supply.

Joints 4
 Hilton's law states that a nerve supplying a joint must also supply the muscle
moving it and the skin overlaying the insertions of these muscles.

Joints 5