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The rib cage or thoracic cage is an endoskeletal enclosure in the thorax of most vertebrates that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum, which protect the vital organs of the thoracic cavity, such as the heart, lungs and great vessels and support the shoulder girdle to form the core part of the axial skeleton.
The bony skeletal part of the thoracic wall is the rib cage, and the rest is made up of muscle, skin, and fasciae.. The chest wall has 10 layers, namely (from superficial to deep) skin (epidermis and dermis), superficial fascia, deep fascia and the invested extrinsic muscles (from the upper limbs), intrinsic muscles associated with the ribs (three layers of intercostal muscles), endothoracic ...
structures of the nervous system including the paired vagus nerves, and the paired sympathetic chains, lymphatics including the thoracic duct. It contains three potential spaces lined with mesothelium: the paired pleural cavities and the pericardial cavity. The mediastinum comprises those organs which lie in the centre of the chest between the ...
A thoracostomy is a small incision of the chest wall, [1] with maintenance of the opening for drainage. [2] It is most commonly used for the treatment of a pneumothorax.This is performed by physicians, paramedics, and nurses usually via needle thoracostomy or an incision into the chest wall with the insertion of a thoracostomy tube (chest tube) or with a hemostat and the provider's finger ...
In reference to the muscles of the thoracic wall, the intercostal nerves and vessels run posterior to the internal intercostal muscles: therefore, they are generally covered on the inside by the parietal pleura, except when they are covered by the innermost intercostal muscles, innermost intercostal membrane, subcostal muscles or the transversus thoracis muscle.
The superior thoracic aperture is essentially a hole surrounded by a bony ring, through which several vital structures pass. It is bounded by: the first thoracic vertebra (T1) posteriorly; the first pair of ribs laterally, forming lateral C-shaped curves posterior to anterior; and the costal cartilage of the first rib and the superior border of the manubrium anteriorly.
The medial cutaneous branches of the posterior divisions of the thoracic nerves descend for some distance close to the spinous processes before reaching the skin, while the lateral branches travel downward for a considerable distance—it may be as much as the breadth of four ribs—before they become superficial; the branch from the twelfth thoracic, for instance, reaches the skin only a ...
The transversus thoracis muscle (/ t r æ n z ˈ v ɜːr s ə s θ ə ˈ r eɪ s ɪ s /), also known as triangularis sterni, lies internal to the thoracic cage, anteriorly.It is usually a thin plane of muscular and tendinous fibers, however on athletic individuals it can be a thick 'slab of meat', situated upon the inner surface of the front wall of the chest.