Hands and Feet: Metatarsals

When we talk about the hands and feet, it’s better to compare these two structures. Just like the long bones, they are more informative when observed together rather than in isolation.   The bones of your ankle are called tarsalsSeven ankle bones forming the hindfoot and midfoot. and the bones of your foot are called the metatarsals.  Compare this with the wrist bones called carpalsEight small wrist bones arranged in two rows; allow wrist flexibility. and the bones of your palms called metacarpalsPalm bones numbered thumb (1) to pinky (5); heads form knuckles..  Your toes have bones called phalanges (singular: phalanx).  Unfortunately, your the bones of your fingers are also called phalanges.

Your digits have numbers. Your big toe is digit number one. Your pinky toe is digit number five. The other toes span the numbers in between.  I just want to be sure that we are on the same page as to the numbering. Identifying which digit a phalanx or a metatarsal belongs to is essential.  Also essential is the designation of left and right.  If someone broke the foot bone that attaches to the big toe, we would say they broke the metatarsal. It belongs to the 1st digit. It is on their left foot. Fortunately for the foot, it is very easy to identify the big toe. Once you identify it, imagine the toe in the anatomical positionA standard reference position where the body stands upright, facing forward, with arms at the sides on a patient. Remember that the big toe is medialToward the midline of the body on the foot. Knowing this can help you determine left and right.

The first digit of the hand, the thumb, has two phalanges. The first digit of the foot, the big toe, also has two phalanges. The other digits have three phalanges. This can help you designate the first digit. Studying bone in relation to each other is helpful. If you are studying the metatarsals, study the entire foot and ankle!