The bottom part of the breastbone which is cartilage in young people but becomes bone by middle age.
Smallest of the three parts of the sternum (breastbone), articulating with the body of the sternum and with the seventh rib.
The lowermost section of the breastbone: a flat pointed cartilage that gradually ossifies until it is completely replaced by bone, a process not completed until after middle age. It does not articulate with any ribs.
Also known as the xiphisternum or xiphoid cartilage, this is the small oval-shaped projection forming the lowest of the three parts of the sternum or breastbone.
The lowest portion of the sternum; a sword-shaped cartilaginous process supported by bone. No ribs attach to the xiphoid process; however, some abdominal muscles are attached. The xiphoid process ossifies in the aged.
The xiphoid process is the bottom part of the sternum, or breastbone. It starts out as cartilage, a type of connective tissue made of collagen, and slowly turns into bone as a person ages. Unlike other sections of the sternum, the xiphoid process doesn’t connect with any ribs.