Description of the Femur Bone

The femur bone is the largest and longest bone in the human body. Designed to provide great stability and length strength, the femur is a very solid and dense bone that makes up the majority of an individuals total leg length.

Features

• The femur is the largest and longest single bone in the human body. The femur at its bottom portion meshes with the tibia bone to create the knee joint. At its top end, the femur meshes with the acetabulum to create the hip joint.

Function

• The femur is responsible for bearing the largest percentage of body weight during normal weight-bearing activities. The femur is a solid, inflexible bone.

Significance

• At maturity, the femur bone contributes the largest percentage of height towards an individual's adult height. Normally, the femur bone continues to grow and lengthen well into the late teenage years and even into the early 20's.

Identification

• The femur is a unique bone that is identifiable by its considerably length relative to the rest of the bones in the human body. In addition, the femur has two very distinct and bony protuberances called trochanters. The greater trochanter is the largest bony protuberance and is located just below the neck of the femur; the lesser trochranter is smaller and is located a few inches below the greater trochanter.

Fun Fact

• During hip replacement surgery, the top of the femur bone, the femoral head, is removed completely and a prosthetic, or artificial, femoral head is implanted in its place and anchored securely to the femur.