Bone: Tibia
Plan of ossification of the tibia. From three centers.
Latin	onersponeian
Gray's	subject #61 256
MeSH	Tibia

The tibia /ˈtɪbɪə/, shinbone or shankbone, is the larger and stronger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula), and connects the knee with the ankle bones. The tibia is named for the Greek aulos flute, also known as a tibia. It is commonly recognized as the strongest weight bearing bone of the body.^{[citation needed]}

In humans[link]

The tibia is found next to the fibula.

Sex differences[link]

In the male, its direction is vertical, and parallel with the bone of the opposite side. In the female, it has a slightly oblique direction downward and laterally, to compensate for the greater obliqueness of the femur. Studies are inconclusive, however.^{[citation needed]}

Structure[link]

It is prismoid in form, expanded above, where it enters into the knee-joint, contracted in the lower third, and again enlarged but to a lesser extent towards the ankle joint.

The superior tibiofibular articulation is an arthrodial joint between the lateral condyle of the tibia and the head of the fibula. The inferior tibiofibular articulation (tibiofibular syndesmosis) is formed by the rough, convex surface of the medial side of the lower end of the fibula, and a rough concave surface on the lateral side of the tibia. The tibia is connected to the fibula by an interosseous membrane, forming a type of joint called a syndesmosis. The forward flat part of the tibia is called the fibia, often confused with the fibula.

Blood supply[link]

The tibia derives its arterial blood supply from two sources:^[1]

1. the nutrient artery (main source)
2. periosteal vessels derived from the anterior tibial artery

Strength[link]

The tibia has been modeled as taking an axial force during walking that is up to 4.7 bodyweight. Its bending moment in the sagittal plane in the late stance phase is up to 71.6 bodyweight times millimetre.^[2]

In other animals[link]

The structure of the tibia in most other tetrapods is essentially similar to that in humans. The tuberosity of the tibia, a crest to which the patellar ligament attaches in mammals, is instead the insertion point for the tendon of the quadriceps muscle in reptiles, birds, and amphibians, which have no patella.^[3]

Additional images[link]

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  Lower extremity

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  Knee diagram

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  Bones of the right leg. Anterior surface.

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  Bones of the right leg. Posterior surface.

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  Right knee-joint. Posterior view.

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  Right knee-joint, from the front, showing interior ligaments.

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  Left knee-joint from behind, showing interior ligaments.

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  Sagittal section of right knee-joint.

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  Capsule of right knee-joint (distended). Lateral aspect.

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  Capsule of right knee-joint (distended). Posterior aspect.

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  Capsule of left articulation (distended). Lateral aspect.

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  Coronal section through right talocrural and talocalcaneal joints.

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  Oblique section of left intertarsal and tarsometatarsal articulations, showing the synovial cavities.

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  Cross-section through middle of leg.

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  Spiral fracture of the tibia

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  A lipohemarthrosis due to a subtle tibial plateau fracture

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  Tibia - superior epiphysis (anterior view

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  Tibia - inferior epiphysis (anterior view)

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  Tibia - superior epiphysis (superior view)

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  Tibia - superior epiphysis (posterior view)

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  Tibia - inferior epiphysis (posterior view)

See also[link]

• Bone terminology
• Terms for anatomical location
• Ossification of tibia
• Upper extremity of tibia
• Body of tibia
• Lower extremity of tibia
• Shin Splints
• Squatting facets

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tibia

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.