. The anatomy of the human body. Human anatomy; Anatomy. THE VERTEBRAL COLUMN. 1& THE VERTEBRAL COLUMN. General Characters of the Vertebrae.—Characters peculiar to the Vertebra of each Region. —Characters proper to certain Vcrtebrcc.—Vertebra of the Sacro-Coccygeal Region.—The Vertebral Column in general.—Development. The vertebral column (from the Latin word vertere, to turn, because ,, ^* ^' the body turns round this as an axis), spine, or rachis, is that long, flex- ible, hollow, bony stem, the principal lever of the body, which affords support to almost the entire skeleton, and, at the
. The anatomy of the human body. Human anatomy; Anatomy. THE VERTEBRAL COLUMN. 1& THE VERTEBRAL COLUMN. General Characters of the Vertebrae.—Characters peculiar to the Vertebra of each Region. —Characters proper to certain Vcrtebrcc.—Vertebra of the Sacro-Coccygeal Region.—The Vertebral Column in general.—Development. The vertebral column (from the Latin word vertere, to turn, because ,, ^* ^' the body turns round this as an axis), spine, or rachis, is that long, flex- ible, hollow, bony stem, the principal lever of the body, which affords support to almost the entire skeleton, and, at the same time, shields and protects the spinal marrow. It is situate^ at the posterior and median portion of the trunk, extending from the cranium to the pelvis, where it terminates in two osseous pieces, the sacrum and coccyx, which may, in fact, be. regarded as a continuation of the column. The sacrum and the coccyx have been separated from the vertebral column merely on account of the osseous junction of the vertebras of which they are composed.* It is articulated with the base of the cranium at the part where the posterior joins the two anterior thirds of this cavity : it corresponds with the posterior portion of the pelvis, an ar- rangement most favorable for maintaining the erect position. The vertebral column is situated behind the alimentary canal in man, above it in the lower animals. In front are suspended the or- gans of respiration and circulation, to which it affords protection, and which constantly tend to incline it forward: to its sides are attached the ribs and the extremities, the thoracic having an indirect and movable, the abdominal a fixed connexion. From the limits here assigned to the vertebral column, it follows that this part of the skeleton extends the whole length of the trunk, forming tlie entire osseous support of the neck and loins, the poste- rior column of the thorax, and even the posterior wall of the pelvis. Hence it is divided into four
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Keywords: ., boo, bookcentury1800, booksubjectanatomy, booksubjecthumananatomy
