THE PELVIC GIRDLE The pelvic girdle is also referred to as the hip girdle. It is formed by a single fused bone called the hip bone. This is the attachment point for each of the two lower limbs. The hip bone is connected to the axial skeleton by an attachment to the sacrum at the sacroiliac joint. The pelvic girdle is largely immobile and is built for weightbearing. The three parts or segments to the pelvic bone are the ilium, the ischium, and the pubis. The ilium is the largest part. It is fan-shaped and connects the immobile sacroiliac joint. The superior iliac crest is the upper margin of the ilium called the iliac crest. Figure 46 shows the pelvic bone and its connections:
The ischium forms the posterior and lateral part of the hip bone. There is a tuberosity on the inferior portion, called the ischial tuberosity, which attaches the posterior thigh muscles and carries the weight of the body when a person is sitting. The pubis is the anterior part of the hip bone. It is connected in the middle to the other pubis by the pubic symphysis. There is a circular portion or hole in the pelvis made from the ischium and pubis, which form out of the 95
