The tibia, shinbone, or shankbone is the larger and stronger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates and connects the knee with the ankle bones. The tibia is named for the greek aulos flute, also known as a tibia. It is commonly recognised as the strongest weight bearing bone in the body.
The tibia is found medial anterior to the fibula. It is the second largest bone in the human body, the largest being the femur. The tibia articulates with the femur superiorly, the fibula laterally and with the talus inferiorly.
The superior tibiofibular articulation is an arthrodial joint between the lateral condyle of the tibia and the head of the fibula. The inferior tibiofibular articulation (tibiofibular syndesmosis) is formed by the rough, convex surface of the medial side of the lower end of the fibula, and a rough concave surface on the lateral side of the tibia. The tibia is connected to the fibula by an interosseous membrane, forming a type of joint called a syndesmoses. The forward flat part of the tibia is called the fibia, often confused with the fibula.
The structure of the tibia in most other tetrapods is essentially similar to that in humans. The tuberosity of the tibia, a crest to which the patellar ligament attaches in mammals, is instead the insertion point for the tendon of the quadriceps muscle in reptiles, birds, and amphibians, which have no patella.
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.
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