Joints
Pubic symphysis
A disc of fibrocartilage between the two pubic bones. It closes the pelvic ring at the front and works with the two SI joints as one force ring: if one part fails, there are usually two.
- Joint type
- Symphysis (secondary cartilaginous joint), minimal movement
- Body region
- Pelvis
- Latin name
- Symphysis pubica
Movements, axes and normal values
| Movement | Plane | Axis | Normal range | End feel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shift and tilt | compound | no axis of its own | 1-2 mm, up to 5 mm and 3 degrees during pregnancy | hard-elastic |
- Close-packed position
- Symmetrical, closed position of the pelvic ring
- Resting (loose-packed) position
- Not meaningfully defined
- Capsular pattern
- Not applicable
- Arthrokinematics
- Almost no gliding; the disc deforms under alternating load, for instance during single leg stance.
- Stability
- Superior and inferior (arcuate) pubic ligaments, the interpubic disc and the attaching abdominal and adductor muscles.
- Palpation
- Directly in the midline above the genitals; palpate only with consent and after explaining beforehand.
- Clinical
- Symphysiolysis and pelvic instability around delivery; osteitis pubis in athletes with frequent changes of direction; a painful symphysis always calls for assessment of the whole pelvic ring, not of one point.
- Source
- Vleeming et al., Movement, Stability and Lumbopelvic Pain; Standring, Gray's Anatomy