An expert osteopathic diagnostician will be able to detect at once by a single passage of the hands down over the ribs if there are any disorders of them. In passing the flat of the hand, especially the flat part of the fingers over the ribs, carefully observe if the intercostal spaces are too narrow or too wide, and if any of the ribs are unduly prominent or depressed. If an intercostal space is too narrow it shows that the ribs on either side of the intercostal space are too close together. Then the question arises, which one of the ribs is crowding upon the intercostal space, or whether both of the ribs are crowded together. Usually when the sternal end of the rib is displaced upward, the involved rib is prominent and when displaced downward the rib is depressed. Thus it is commonly easy to diagnose which is the involved rib. Besides finding an abnormal position of the rib there will be more or less tenderness over the rib. Finding a rib prominent or depressed and tender is generally quite conclusive that the rib is displaced. Then the range of movement as expressed through the sense of resistance is a helpful guide in diagnosis. If a =typical rib= is placed upon a flat surface and one end of it is depressed the other end will be elevated and _vice versa_. This peculiarity holds true as well when the ribs (typical) are dislocated in the living body. If the anterior end is elevated the posterior end is commonly depressed and _vice versa_. Care should be taken in examining the first rib and the false ribs, for in these ribs this peculiarity is not found. As a whole a very complete diagnosis can be made of the condition of the ribs by examining the anterior part of the thorax, although it is always best to examine along the angles of the ribs if for nothing more than to confirm the diagnosis made at the sternal ends. Still it must be remembered that the preceding only holds good when the entire rib is dislocated. Many times simply one end of the rib is deranged and the other end is practically intact. Besides careful examination of the sternal end of the rib, attention should be paid to the condition of the costal cartilages. The costal cartilages may become deranged at either the articulation with the rib or with the sternum. The same rule holds good when the costal cartilages are dislocated as when the ribs are dislocated, i. e., when the cartilages are prominent, they are usually displaced upward and when depressed the cartilage is displaced downward toward its neighbor.