What is the anatomical position of the sternum?
Lily Fisher
Updated on May 02, 2026
What is the anatomical position of the sternum?
The bottom line. The sternum is a long, flat bone that’s located in the middle of your chest. It provides both support and protection for your torso.
What is sternal surface?
The sternum is a long, flat bone, forming the middle portion of the front of the chest. The top of the sternum supports the clavicles (collarbones) and its edges join with the costal cartilages of the first two pairs of ribs. The inner surface of the sternum is also the attachment of the sternopericardial ligaments.
What are the 3 parts to the sternum?
In mammals the sternum is divided into three parts, from anterior to posterior: (1) the manubrium, which articulates with the clavicles and first ribs; (2) the mesosternum, often divided into a series of segments, the sternebrae, to which the remaining true ribs are attached; and (3) the posterior segment, called the …
What are the landmarks of the sternum?
The sternum has three important bony landmarks–the jugular notch, the sternal angle, and the xiphisternal joint. The jugular notch (concave upper border of the manubrium) can be palpated easily; generally it is at the level of the third thoracic vertebra.
What is at the bottom of the sternum?
The xiphoid process is a tiny bone structure located at the center of the chest, just below the lower part of the sternum. At birth, the xiphoid process is formed from cartilage that eventually develops into bone.
What does your sternum look like?
The shape of the sternum looks somewhat like a sword pointing downwards, with the manubrium forming the handle, the body forming the blade, and the xiphoid process forming the tip. In fact, the name manubrium means “handle,” gladiolus means “sword,” and xiphoid means “sword-shaped.”
What is bird sternum?
The keel-shaped sternum (breastbone) is where the powerful flight muscles are well developed. It is one of the largest bones of a bird’s skeleton and is part of the pectoral girdle. It consists of a convex/concave basal plate and the keel perpendicular to it, protruding ventrally.
What is sternal notch?
1132. FMA. 7542. Anatomical terms of bone. The suprasternal notch, also known as the fossa jugularis sternalis, or jugular notch, or Plender gap is a large, visible dip in between the neck in humans, between the clavicles, and above the manubrium of the sternum.
What is the most distal aspect of the sternum?
The manubrium sterni also articulates with the costal cartilages of the 1st pair of ribs. The xiphoid process (xiphisternum/xiphoid) is triangular shaped and forms the distal-most part of the sternum. The size and shape of the xiphoid process are highly variable.
What is the bottom of the sternum called?
The xiphoid process is the smallest region of the sternum, or breastbone. It’s made up of cartilage at birth but develops into bone in adulthood. It’s located where the lower ribs attach to the breastbone. The tip of the xiphoid process resembles a sword.
Should there be a lump at the bottom of my sternum?
It is also possible for the area to become inflamed, causing a lump to develop around the lower sternum. This lump is a result of inflammation but can often be mistaken for a more serious medical condition, such as a tumor.
What organ is right below your sternum?
Both the liver and the stomach are located in the lower chest region under the thoracic diaphragm, a sheet of muscle at the bottom of the rib cage that separates the chest cavity from the abdominal cavity.
Where is the sternum located in the body?
The sternum (or breastbone, Latin: sternum) is a long, flat bone that is located in the anterior midline of the thorax. The sternum is connected to the first seven ribs via their costal cartilages. This bone forms the anterior part of the thoracic cage, thus participating in the protection of internal thoracic organs from injury.
What does the sternum bone articulate with?
The sternum (Figs. 115 to 117) is an elongated, flattened bone, forming the middle portion of the anterior wall of the thorax. Its upper end supports the clavicles, and its margins articulate with the cartilages of the first seven pairs of ribs.
What is the anatomy of the foot?
Surface Anatomy of the Foot Foot structure and function is a complex network of 26 bones with numerous ligaments, and tendons which are working and moving simultaneously to during gait to absorb and store energy and summarily convert that stored energy into kinetic energy to create smooth effortless locomotion.
Where is the demifacet of the sternum?
At the lower part of the body of the sternum is a demifacet for articulation with the upper part of the costal cartilage of rib 7.