Types of Joints: Fibrous and Cartilaginous

Fibrous Joints

• Characteristics

  • No synovial cavity
  • Articulating bones held by dense fibrous connective tissue
  • Little or no movement (immovable joints)

• Types of Fibrous Joints

  • Sutures
    • Found between bones of the skull
    • Characterized as synarthroses (immovable joints)
    • Result from the closure of fontanelles in newborn skulls
  • Syndesmoses
    • Contains interosseous membranes
      • Example: Between tibia and fibula in the lower leg
      • Between radius and ulna in the forearm
    • Includes gonfosis
      • Where the tooth attaches into the alveolar bone of the mandible and maxilla
      • Surrounded by periodontal ligament (dense connective tissue)

Cartilaginous Joints

• Characteristics

  • Lack a synovial cavity
  • Bones held together by cartilage connective tissue
  • Little or no movement

• Types of Cartilaginous Joints

  • Synchondroses
    • No movement
    • Example: Epiphyseal plate in long bones (temporary joint that ossifies after puberty)
  • Symphyses
    • Little movement (amphiarthrosis)
    • Example: Pubic symphysis
      • Fibrocartilaginous joint, allows slight movement during childbirth
    • Intervertebral discs
      • Cartilaginous discs between vertebrae, allow limited movement