Exam 2: Musculoskeletal Assessment Flashcards
Subjective data for Musculoskeletal
Joints
—Pain, stiffness, swelling, limiting ROM
Muscles
— Trauma/pain, deformity, gain/loss
Exercise program
Weight gain and loss
ADLs
— Bathing. toileting, dressing, grooming, eating
Mobility/ADL aids
Occupational Hazards
— Lifting, repetition of joint movement, uneven surfaces
When obtaining objective data, INSPECT
Gait
mobility
balance
obvious deformities of muscles and bones
skin
spinal curvatures (lordosis, kyphosis, scoliosis)
Symmetry: size, structure, function of muscle mass
When obtaining objective data, palpate each join and note
Heat, edema, tenderness, swelling, masses
When assessing ROM, note
resistance and presence of pain
Any crepitation vs. discrete crack/pop
Active ROM assessment
Patient performs
Passive ROM assessment
nurse performs
— DO NOT FORCE into a painful position, mild stretching/discomfort OK, but we do not want to tear soft tissue
Crepitation
grinding in joints roughened joins as with rheumatoid arthritis
Cracking and popping in the joins is when
Fluid and gasses shift in the joint
Muscle testing during objective data assessment
- Compare both sides at the same time if able
- Flex as you hold opposing force or resist that opposing force
Hypertonicity
increased tone/resistance
Hypotonicity
decreased tone/resistance… very relaxed, floppy or flabby
Atrophy
Reduced size, feels soft/boggy
Assessing cervical spine
Checking the alignment of head and neck
Palpate for spasms and tenderness
testing ROM of cervical spine
Flexion (chin to chest) Hyperextension (look upward) Lateral bend (ear to shoulder) Rotation (turn head to shoulder) --- then repeat with opposing force
Inspecting the lower spine (person should stand if able) and inspect
If spine is straight
shoulder evaluation, uneven scapula, iliac crest, gluteal folds, spacing between arm and lateral thorax
ROM assessment for lower spine
Bend and touch toes, bend sideways, backwards
Twist side to side
The vertebral column has four curves that are
Anterior-posterior curves
The cervical and lumbar curves are
Concave (inward)
The thoracic and sacrococcygeal curves are
Convex (outward)
What allows the spine to absorb shock
balance of the curves with the resilient intervertebral discs
Scoliosis
LATERAL S-shape curvature of the thoracic and lumbar spin
A normal spine has a double s-shape that is
Anterior/posterior, not lateral