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Fourth metacarpal bone

Field	Value
Name	Fourth metacarpal bone
Latin	os metacarpale IV
Image	Fourth metacarpal bone (left hand) 01 palmar view.png
Caption	Fourth metacarpal of the left hand (shown in red). Palmar view.
Image2	Gray232.png
Caption2	The fourth metacarpal. (Left.)

The fourth metacarpal bone (metacarpal bone of the ring finger) is shorter and smaller than the third.

The base is small and quadrilateral; its superior surface presents two facets, a large one medially for articulation with the hamate, and a small one laterally for the capitate.

On the radial side are two oval facets, for articulation with the third metacarpal; and on the ulnar side a single concave facet, for the fifth metacarpal.

Clinical relevance

A shortened fourth metacarpal bone can be a symptom of Kallmann syndrome, a genetic condition which results in the failure to commence or the non-completion of puberty. A short fourth metacarpal bone can also be found in Turner syndrome, a disorder involving sex chromosomes.

A fracture of the fourth and/or fifth metacarpal bones transverse neck secondary due to axial loading is known as a boxer's fracture.

Ossification

The ossification process begins in the shaft during prenatal life, and in the head between 11th and 37th months.

Additional images

File:Fourth metacarpal bone (left hand) - animation01.gif|Fourth metacarpal bone of the left hand (shown in red). Animation. File:Fourth metacarpal bone (left hand) - animation02.gif|Fourth metacarpal bone of the left hand. Close up. File:Gray219 - Fourth metacarpal bone.png|Palmar view of the left hand (fourth metacarpal shown in yellow). File:Gray220 - Fourth metacarpal bone.png|Dorsal view of the left hand (fourth metacarpal shown in yellow). File:Neck Fracture of the Fourth Metacarpal Bone.png|A fractured right hand fourth metacarpal (boxer's fracture).

References

Shultz, S. J., Houglum, P. A., Perrin, D. H. (2010). Examination of Musculoskeletal Injuries. Chicago: Human Kinetics
Balachandran, Ajay. (30 December 2013). "A Study of Ossification of heads of 2nd to 5th Metacarpals in Forensic Age Estimation in the Kerala Population". Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Sciences.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

bones-of-the-hand metacarpus

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