PNA MIDTERM PREP:

JOINTS

Classification of Joints:
 Joint (articulation) is a point of contract between bones, between cartilage & bones,
between teeth & bone
 Arthrologyscientific study of joints, many joint of the body permit movement
 Kinesiologystudy of motion of the human body
 Joints structure determines its combination of strength and flexibility
Structural classification (based on 2 criteria):
 Synovial cavitypresence or absence of a space between the articulating bones
 Connective tissueholds the bones together, structurally joints are classified as
one of the following:
 Fibrous jointsno synovial cavity and bones are held together by dense irregular
connective tissue
o Permit little or no movement
o Suturefibrous joint that may be slightly moveable (infancy), or immovable
(found between skull bones in adult)…unite the bones of the skull, composed
of a thin layer of dense irregular connective tissue
o Interosseous membranespermits slight movement (between the radius &
ulna and the tibia & fibula)
o Periodontal ligamentsbetween teeth and the jaw bones: immovable
 Cartilaginous jointsno synovial cavity and the bones are held together by cartilage
o Allows little or no movement like a fibrous joint
o Articulating (joint) bones are tightly connected by either hyaline cartilage or
fibrocartilage
o Joint includes epiphyseal plate (immovable joint), public symphysis (slightly
moveable joint), intervertebral joint (slightly moveable)

 Synovial jointsunited by the dense irregular connective tissue of an articular capsule,

and often by ligaments
o Presence or absence of a space between the articulating bones
o Allows a joint to be freely moveable
o Synovial membrane secretes synovial fluid, which forms a thin, viscous film
over the surfaces within the articular capsule (surrounds the synovial joint)
o Many synovial joints contain accessory ligaments, articular disc, fibrous &
synovial membranes
o Bursaesaclike structures, similar in structure to joint capsules, that reduce
friction in joints such as the shoulder and the knee joints
o Types of movement at synovial joints:
 Glidingsimple movement, flat surfaces of the bones bone move back-and-
forth & side-to-side
 Angular movementsincrease or decrease in the angle between bones
(flexion-extension, hyperextension, abduction-adduction, circumduction
 Rotationbone moves around its own longitudinal axis
 Special movementoccurs only at certain joints in the body (elevation-
depression, protraction-retraction, inversion-eversion, dorsiflexion-
plantarflexion, supination-pronation, opposition)
o Types of synovial joints (6 types):
1. Pivot jointsrounded or pointed surface of one bone fits into a formed by
another bone and a ligament, movement is rotational (uniaxial); examples
are the atlantoaxial and radioulnar joints
2. Ball-and-socket jointsball shaped surface of one bone fits into the
cuplike depression of another; motion is around the 3 axes (triaxial)
examples; shoulder and hips
3. Planejoints the articulating surfaces are flat, and the bones glide back-
and-forth & side-to-side Examples; joints between carpals and the joints
between tarsals
4. Hinge jointsconvex surface of one bone fits into the concave surface of
another, motion is angular around one axis Examples; elbow, knee, ankle
joints
5. Condyloid jointsconcave oval-shaped projection of one bone fits into
the concave oval-shaped depression of another bone Examples; wrist and
metacarpophalangeal (between the metacarpals and phalangeal)
6. Saddle jointsarticular surface of the other bone is saddle-shaped, and
the articular surface of the other bone fits into the saddle like a rider sitting
on a horse Example; carpometacarpal joint between the trapezium of the
carpus and metacarpal of the thumb