What causes a pulmonary embolism? Blood clots can form for a variety of reasons. Pulmonary embolisms are most often caused by deep vein thrombosis, a condition in which blood clots form in veins deep in the body. The blood clots that most often cause pulmonary embolisms begin in the legs or pelvis.
All ribs are attached posteriorly to the thoracic vertebrae. The neck of the rib is the flattened part that extends laterally from the head. The neck is about 3 cm long, and is placed in front of the transverse process of the lower of the two vertebrae with which the head articulates.
Best Answer: The top seven bones are called the true ribs. These bones are connected to the spine (the backbone) in back and directly to the breastbone or sternum by a strips of cartilage called the costal cartilage in the front. The next three pairs of bones are called false ribs. These bones are slightly shorter than the true ribs and are connected to the spine in back. However, instead of being attached directly to the sternum in front, the false ribs are attached to the lowest true rib. The last two sets of rib bones are called floating ribs. Floating ribs are smaller than both the true ribs and the false ribs. They are attached to the spine at the back, but are not connected to anything in the front.