The radiate ligament of head of rib is a ligament of the costovertebral joint that typically connects the anterior edge of the head of each rib, and the side of the bodies of two adjacent vertebrae and their intervertebral discs.

[1][2] The ligament is formed as a thickening of the anterior portion of the joint capsule of the costovertebral joint,[1] and thus reinforces it anteriorly.

[3] In the case of the first rib, the radiate ligament attaches to the bodies of the vertebrae C7 and T1.

[2] The ligament consists of three bands:[3] The radiate ligament is posterior to the thoracic ganglia of the sympathetic trunk, pleura, and - on the right side - the azygos vein; it is anterior to the interarticular ligament, and synovial membranes.

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