Tibia — Anatomy Notes, Diagram & Quiz

The Tibia is located in the lower leg. Main weight-bearing bone of lower leg. The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.

Tibia highlighted in a 3D model of the human body
Tibia highlighted in the 3D body atlas. 3D atlas: BodyParts3D (DBCLS, CC BY-SA 2.1 Japan); Écorché/Z-Anatomy (CC BY-SA 4.0). Rendered in anotemy.

Key facts

Tibia at a glance
LocationLower leg
Main functionMain weight-bearing bone of lower leg.
Layerskeleton
Key fact 1The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.
Key fact 2The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle.
Key fact 3The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

Where is the Tibia located?

The Tibia is located in the lower leg.

The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.

What does the Tibia do?

Main weight-bearing bone of lower leg.

The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle.

What to know for exams

  • The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.
  • The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle.
  • The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

It belongs to the skeleton layer. Learn its location, relations, and the structures it works with.

Clinical relevance

The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

Link the tibia to its blood supply, innervation and relations. That is how exam questions usually test it.

Memory aid: Tibia

The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee. The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle. The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

Chain it as location → function → clinical link when you revise.

Tibia anatomy quiz

Five questions. Open each answer after you commit to a response.

  1. Where is the Tibia located?

    Reveal answer

    Lower leg

  2. What is the main function of the Tibia?

    Reveal answer

    Main weight-bearing bone of lower leg.

  3. Give one key fact about the Tibia.

    Reveal answer

    The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.

  4. Give another key fact about the Tibia.

    Reveal answer

    The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle.

  5. What clinical link is associated with the Tibia?

    Reveal answer

    The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

Common questions

Where is the Tibia located?

The Tibia is located in the lower leg. The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee.

What does the Tibia do?

Main weight-bearing bone of lower leg. The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle.

What is a key fact about the Tibia?

The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

What layer does the Tibia belong to?

It belongs to the skeleton layer of the body.

What should I remember for exams?

The Tibia is the larger and medial bone of the lower leg, articulating with the femur at the knee. The Tibia forms the medial malleolus, which is the bony prominence on the inner ankle. The Tibia has a relatively poor blood supply in its lower third, making fractures there slow to heal.

Sources

  1. Standring, S. (ed.). Gray’s Anatomy, 42nd edition. Elsevier, 2020.
  2. TeachMeAnatomy — anatomy library
  3. Kenhub — anatomy library
  4. StatPearls / NCBI Bookshelf — Tibia search

3D atlas and image credits

Anatomy models: BodyParts3D, © Database Center for Life Science (DBCLS), CC BY-SA 2.1 Japan. Écorché by Charleeh, derived from BodyParts3D and Z-Anatomy, CC BY-SA 4.0. Rendered in anotemy. Changes: highlighting, framing, labels and background removal. Images: CC BY-SA 4.0.

The 3D models are third-party assets under Creative Commons share-alike licences. They keep those licences; the page text is separate. If you reuse an image, keep the attribution and the share-alike licence.