Thoracic Apertures
diaphragm
- Opening of the thoracic cage
o Superior Thoracic Aperture
- Smaller, kidney shaped opening
- Adult size: 6.5 cm (anteroposteriorly),
and 11 cm (transversely)
- Allows communication with the neck
and upper limbs
- Aperature slopes antero-inferiorly
because of obliquity of 1st pair of ribs
- Content:
 Esophagus
 Trachea
 Vessels that supply and drain
the head, neck, and upper limbs
(common carotid artery,
subclavian artery, internal
jugular vein)
 Nerves (Phrenic,vagus)
- Boundaries:
 Posteriorly: 1st Thoracic
Vertebra
 Laterally: 1st pair of ribs and
their costal cartilages
 Anteriorly: superior border of
the manubrium
o Inferior Thoracic Aperture
- Anatomical Thoracic Outlet
- Larger, more spacious, and irregular in
outline
- Oblique (posterior thoracic wall is
longer than anterior thoracic wall)
- Provides ring-like origin of the
- Is closed by the diaphragm
- structures passing between the
abdomen and the thorax
pierce(Esophagus, Inferior Vena
Cava)/pass (Aorta) posteriorly to the
diaphragm
- Boundaries:
 Posteriorly: 12th thoracic
vertebra
 Posterolaterally: 11th and 12th
pairs of ribs
 Anterolaterally: joined by the
costal cartilages of ribs 7-10
 Anteriorly: xiphisternal joint
• Name the Divisions of the Thoracic
Cavity
- Central Mediastinum – houses thoracic
viscera
- Left Pulmonary Cavities- houses the
lungs
- Right Pulmonary Cavities- houses the
lungs
• Thoracic and Pleural cavity
 Thoracic Cavity
- Shaped like a truncated cone (being
narrowest superiorly, with the
 circumference increasing inferiorly, and
reaching its maximum size at the
junction with the abdominal portion of
the trunk)
- Enclosed by the ribs, sternum, and
vertebral column
 Pleural Cavity
- Space between the parietal and visceral
pleurae
- Represents a closed sac with no
communication between the left and
right parts
- contains film/fluid that lubricates the
surface of the pleurae and facilitates
movement of the lungs
• Enumerate the layers of the thoracic
wall in the following reference lines
 Midclavicular Line
- Runs vertically downward from the
midpoint of the clavicle
- Pectoralis Major (muscle attachment)
 Midaxillary Line
- Runs vertically downward from a point
situated midway between the anterior
and posterior axillary folds
- Anterior Axillary Line runs vertically
along the anterior axillary fold that is
formed by the inferolateral border of
the pectoralis major as it spans from
the thoracic cage to the humerus in the
arm
- Posterior Axillary Line is also parallel to
the AAL, is drawn vertically along the
posterior axillary fold formed by the
latissimus dorsi and teres major
muscles as they span from the back to
the humerus.
 Scapular Line
- Runs vertically downward on the
posterior wall of the thorax, passing
through the inferior angle of the
scapula (arms at the side)
- Teres Major (muscle attachment)