Tibia

The tibia is a bone in the lower leg. It is the larger of the two lower leg bones and can be easily felt at the front of the leg at the shin.

It is also called the shankbone or shinbone found in the middle side of the leg closer to centre-line which connects the knee to the ankle joints. It is the second largest bone after femur and is recognized as the strongest weight bearing bone.

Tibia joined to fibula by interosseous membrane forms a syndesmosis joint having very little movement.

The arterial blood supply of the tibia are supplied by 2 sources: the main source is the nutrient artery and the periostal vessels supplied by anterior tibial artery.

In males, tibias are in vertical direction and are parallel to each other. In females, tibias are in slight oblique downward laterally to compensate the obliqueness of the femur.

Name Origin
It comes from the Greek word aulos flute which is also known as tibia.