Henry Gray (1825–1861). Anatomy of the Human Body. 1918.
pages 228
| on the volar than on the dorsal aspect, and is longer in the antero-posterior than in the transverse diameter. On either side of the head is a tubercle for the attachment of the collateral ligament of the metacarpophalangeal joint. The dorsal surface, broad and flat, supports the Extensor tendons; the volar surface is grooved in the middle line for the passage of the Flexor tendons, and marked on either side by an articular eminence continuous with the terminal articular surface. |
Characteristics of the Individual Metacarpal Bones.—The First Metacarpal Bone (os metacarpale I; metacarpal bone of the thumb) (Fig. 229) is shorter and stouter than the others, diverges to a greater degree from the carpus, and its volar surface is directed toward the palm. The body is flattened and broad on its dorsal surface, and does not present the ridge which is found on the other metacarpal bones; its volar surface is concave from above downward. On its radial border is inserted the Opponens pollicis; its ulnar border gives origin to the lateral head of the first Interosseus dorsalis. The base presents a concavo-convex surface, for articulation with the greater multangular; it has no facets on its sides, but on its radial side is a tubercle for the insertion of the Abductor pollicis longus. The head is less convex than those of the other metacarpal bones, and is broader from side to side than from before backward. On its volar surface are two articular eminences, of which the lateral is the larger, for the two sesamoid bones in the tendons of the Flexor pollicis brevis. |
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FIG. 229– The first metacarpal. (Left.) (See enlarged image) |
| The Second Metacarpal Bone (os metacarpale II; metacarpal bone of the index finger) (Fig. 230) is the longest, and its base the largest, of the four remaining bones. Its base is prolonged upward and medialward, forming a prominent ridge. It presents four articular facets: three on the upper surface and one on the ulnar side. Of the facets on the upper surface the intermediate is the largest and is concave from side to side, convex from before backward for articulation with the lesser multangular; the lateral is small, flat and oval for articulation with the greater multangular; the medial, on the summit of the ridge, is long and narrow for articulation with the capitate. The facet on the ulnar side articulates with the third metacarpal. The Extensor carpi radialis longus is inserted on the dorsal surface and the Flexor carpi radialis on the volar surface of the base. |
| The Third Metacarpal Bone (os metacarpale III; metacarpal bone of the middle finger) (Fig. 231) is a little smaller than the second. The dorsal aspect of its base presents on its radial side a pyramidal eminence, the styloid process, which extends upward behind the capitate; immediately distal to this is a rough surface for the attachment of the Extensor carpi radialis brevis. The carpal articular facet is concave behind, flat in front, and articulates with the capitate. On the radial side is a smooth, concave facet for articulation with the second metacarpal, and on the ulnar side two small oval facets for the fourth metacarpal. |
| The Fourth Metacarpal Bone (os metacarpale IV; metacarpal bone of the ring finger) (Fig. 232) is shorter and smaller than the third. The base is small and quadrilateral; its superior surface presents two facets, a large one medially for articulation with the hamate, and a small one laterally for the capitate. On the radial side are two oval facets, for articulation with the third metacarpal; and on the ulnar side a single concave facet, for the fifth metacarpal. |
| The Fifth Metacarpal Bone (os metacarpale V; metacarpal bone of the little finger) (Fig. 233) presents on its base one facet on its superior surface, which is concavo-convex |