Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Familiar term for the scapula, also called the shoulder blade or wing bone, the flat triangular bone at the back of the shoulder.

The ankle bone is termed the talus. It is the bone of the foot that joins the tibia and fibula to form the ankle joint. Plural tali.

One of the four basic bone shapes in the human skeleton. Long bones: Long bones have a tubular shaft and articular surface at each end. The major bones of the arms (humerus, radius, and ulna) and the legs (the femur, tibia, and fibula) are all long bones. Short bones: Short bones also have a tubular shaft and…

A nuclear medicine technique for creating images of bones on a computer screen oron film. A small amount of radioactive materialis injected into a vein and travels through thebloodstream. It collects in the bones, especially in abnormal areas of the bones, and is detected by an instrument called a scanner. Bone scans are used for…

A protein that induces the formation of bone and cartilage. Bone morphogenic protein 2 (which is symbolized BMP2) belongs to a superfamily called transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta). The gene for BMP2 is on chromosome 20 in band 20p12.3. Three sets of variations within the BMP2 gene reportedly triple the risk of developing osteoporosis.

A member of a superfamily of proteins that promote the formation of bone and the skeleton and help mend broken bones. Although it was known that scrapings from healthy bone stimulated the healing of fractures, the nature of the regenerative mechanism remained a mystery until 1965 when Dr. Marshall Urist did an experiment in which he…

BMD, a measure of bone density, reflecting the strength of bones as represented by calcium content. The BMD test detects osteopenia (mild bone loss, usually without symptoms) and osteoporosis (more severe bone loss, which may cause symptoms).

A measure of bone density. Loss of bone mass is due to osteopenia or, if more severe, to osteoporosis.

A procedure in which bone marrow that is diseased or damaged is replaced with healthy bone marrow. The bone marrow to be replaced may be deliberately destroyed by high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. The replacement marrow may be the patient’s own marrow or it may come from another person. If the marrow comes from the patient.…

A procedure in which bone marrow that is diseased or damaged is replaced with healthy bone marrow. The bone marrow to be replaced may be deliberately destroyed by high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. The replacement marrow may be the patient’s own marrow or it may come from another person. If the marrow comes from the patient.…