Scapula

Scapula
The upper picture is an anterior (from the front) view of the thorax and shoulder girdle. The lower picture is a posterior (from the rear) view of the thorax (scapula shown in red).
Details
Identifiers
Latinscapula
(omo)
MeSHD012540
TA98A02.4.01.001
TA21143
FMA13394
Anatomical terms of bone

The scapula (pl.: scapulae or scapulas[1]), also known as the shoulder blade, is the bone that connects the humerus (upper arm bone) with the clavicle (collar bone). Like their connected bones, the scapulae are paired, with each scapula on either side of the body being roughly a mirror image of the other. The name derives from the Classical Latin word for trowel or small shovel, which it was thought to resemble.

In compound terms, the prefix omo- is used for the shoulder blade in medical terminology. This prefix is derived from ὦμος (ōmos), the Ancient Greek word for shoulder, and is cognate with the Latin (h)umerus, which in Latin signifies either the shoulder or the upper arm bone.

The scapula forms the back of the shoulder girdle. In humans, it is a flat bone, roughly triangular in shape, placed on a posterolateral aspect of the thoracic cage.[2]

  1. ^ O.D.E. 2nd Ed. 2005
  2. ^ "Scapula (Shoulder Blade) Anatomy, Muscles, Location, Function | EHealthStar". www.ehealthstar.com. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 2016-03-17.