Epiphyseal line
Linea epiphysialis
- Related terms: Epiphysial line
Definition
The epiphyseal line is a remnant of the epiphyseal plate (or growth plate) that appears in long bones after the bone has finished growing in length. During childhood and adolescence, the epiphyseal plate is a region of hyaline cartilage located between the epiphysis (the end part of a long bone) and the diaphysis (the shaft of the bone). This cartilage is responsible for the longitudinal growth of bones through a process called endochondral ossification.[1-2]
As skeletal maturity is reached, typically after puberty, the cartilage in the epiphyseal plate is gradually replaced by bone tissue, resulting in the formation of the epiphyseal line. This line marks the site where the growth plate used to be and indicates that the bone has stopped growing in length.[2-3]
References
1.Does the Epiphyseal Cartilage of the Long Bones Have One or Two Ossification Fronts?.Delgado-Martos MJ, Touza Fernández A, Canillas F, et al.Medical Hypotheses. 2013;81(4):695-700. doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2013.07.029.
2.Genetic Regulation of the Growth Plate.Karimian E, Chagin AS, Sävendahl L.Frontiers in Endocrinology. 2011;2:113. doi:10.3389/fendo.2011.00113.
3.Fundamental Limits on Longitudinal Bone Growth: Growth Plate Senescence and Epiphyseal Fusion.Nilsson O, Baron J.
