Joint · Thoracic spine

Thoracic facet joints

Articulationes zygapophysiales thoracicae

The paired synovial joints at the back of the mid spine. Their surfaces sit almost vertically, in a near-frontal plane, which favours rotation and side-bending and limits forward and backward bending. The ribs attach at every level here, so the thoracic spine is the least mobile part of the spine by design — it is built to protect the heart and lungs and to give the shoulder blades a stable base. When it stops rotating well, the neck, the shoulders and the low back tend to take up the slack.