The hip joint is one of the most important joints in the human body. It allows us to walk, run, and jump. It bears our bodyââ¬â¢s weight and the force of the strong muscles of the hip and leg. Yet the hip joint is also one of our most flexible joints and allows a greater range of motion than all other joints in the body except for the shoulder. The hip joint is a ball-and-socket synovial joint formed between the os coxa (hip bone) and the femur. A round, cup-shaped structure on the os coax, known as the acetabulum, forms the socket for the hip joint. The rounded head of the femur forms the ball of the joint. The tibia, sometimes known as the shin bone, is the larger and stronger of the two lower leg bones. It forms the knee joint with the femur and the ankle joint with the fibula and tarsus. The fibula is the long, thin and lateral bone of the lower leg. It runs parallel to the tibia, or shin bone, and plays a significant role in stabilizing the ankle and supporting the muscles of the lower leg. The bones of the ankle and foot form the most distal region of the lower limb in the appendicular skeleton. These bones are responsible for the propulsion, balance, and support of the bodyââ¬â¢s weight through many diverse activities, such as standing, walking, running, and jumping.
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