title: Change of some quantitative indices of the proximal and the distal growth cartilage of the human tibia during the period of the prenatal osteogenesis.
abstract: The zones of the tibial growth cartilage of human fetuses (6th lunar month), premature newborns (7th-8th lunar month) and mature newborns were micrometrically studied. The zone thickness, the chondrocyte number in a certain area and in the cell columns as well, and the volume density of the chondrocytes were determined. The obtained quantitative data show that the three indices undergo certain changes during the three age periods of the prenatal osteogenesis studied. They differ in the proximal and in the distal cartilages as well. The fetal tibia is found to be growing more intensively at its distal end. The quantitative processes within the growth cartilages of the tibia are more active during the earlier stages of the intrauterine period while the qualitative processes are found to be more active at the end of the intrauterine period.
mesh_terms: D002452:Cell Count; D005333:Fetus / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D006132:Growth Plate / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D006801:Humans; D010012:Osteogenesis; D013977:Tibia / Q000196:embryology*