Anatomy · Lower Limb

Hip joint: anatomy, movements, stability and applied anatomy

6 min read

  • Hip joint: ball-and-socket synovial joint between the head of femur and the acetabulum of the hip bone; connects pelvic girdle to lower limb.
  • Largest ball-and-socket joint in the body; multiaxial, though its movement range is restricted by its weight-bearing role, second only to the shoulder joint in mobility.

Articular Surfaces

  • Head of femur (more than half a sphere, fovea capitis for the ligamentum teres) articulates with the acetabulum's horseshoe-shaped lunate surface, deepened by the acetabular labrum.
  • The two articular surfaces are reciprocally curved but not co-extensive.

articular surfaces of the hip joint Articular surfaces of the hip joint.

Ligaments