The eleventh and twelfth ribs are floating ribs with no anterior cartilaginous connection, they articulate only with the corresponding vertebral bodies and are the shortest ribs, providing attachment for the quadratus lumborum and diaphragm.
| Articulations |
|
|---|---|
| Landmarks |
|
| Ossification | As per other ribs but without an anterior costal cartilage development. |
The floating ribs 11 and 12 have no anterior attachment, ending free in the lateral abdominal wall muscles. They protect the kidney posteriorly and the kidney can be surgically approached through the bed of the 12th rib (retroperitoneal approach). Cervical ribs (from C7) can compress the brachial plexus and are more clinically significant than 12th rib anomalies. Os acromiale, a separate acromion ossification centre, is distinct but a similar concept of a normally-fusing bone failing to unite.
Fracture of the 11th or 12th rib from a blow to the flank may be associated with kidney, liver, or spleen injury.
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