Triradiate cartilage

Looks like

A Y-shaped growth cartilage in the hip socket of children, where the three pelvic bones (ilium, ischium, pubis) meet.

What it does

Lets the hip socket grow; it fuses into bone in the mid-teens.

Keeping it well

Injury to it in a child can leave a shallow socket. On X-ray its closure shows skeletal maturity.

Related conditions

• Bone metastases and spinal cord compression
• Developmental dysplasia of the hip
• Gout
• Haemophilia & bleeding disorders
• Lyme disease
• Marfan syndrome & connective tissue disorders
• Obstructed labour and obstetric fistula
• Osteoarthritis
• Psoriatic arthritis
• Rheumatic fever & rheumatic heart disease
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Temporomandibular joint disorder