The Spine / The Coccyx or Tail Bone

submitted by Dr. Gary Farr Last Updated June, 24, 2002

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The coccyx, also called the tailbone, is a curved, semiflexible lower end of the backbone (vertebral column) in apes and humans, representing a vestigial tail. It is composed of three to five successively smaller caudal (coccygeal) vertebrae. The first is a relatively well-defined vertebra and connects with the sacrum; the last is represented by a small nodule of bone. The spinal cord ends above the coccyx. In early adulthood the coccygeal vertebrae fuse with each other; in later life the coccyx may fuse with the sacrum. A corresponding structure in other vertebrates, such as birds, may also be called a coccyx.

The ventral (front) rami of S4, S5, and the first coccygeal nerve form the coccygeal plexus, from which small anococcygeal nerves arise to innervate the skin over the coccyx (tailbone) and around the anus.

The Coccyx

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