The vertebral column consists of 5 regions:

• Cervical (7 bones)
• Thoracic (12 bones)
• Lumbar (5 bones)
• Sacral (5 fused)
• Coccygeal (4 fused)

Primary curvatures

• Develop in foetal life, before birth
  • Regions affected:
    • Thoracic
    • Sacral
  • Kyphosis
    • Spine curves posteriorly, like a hunchback appearance
    • Memory aid: the one that’s not lordosis

Secondary curvatures

• Develop in childhood, after birth
  • Regions affected:
    • Cervical
    • Lumbar
  • Lordosis
    • Spine curves anteriorly, like a fancy, puffed out pigeon
    • Memory aid: lordosis happens later; lords are fancy people, so they stand proudly and don’t hunch their backs

References

1. Emory University. (n.d.). The Vertebral Column and Spinal Cord. [online] Available at: http://www.emory.edu/ANATOMY/AnatomyManual/back.html [Accessed 12 Jan. 2018].