Fractures Flashcards
Simple incomplete fracture?
Not completely fractured and not displaced
Simple complete fracture?
Complete fracture but not displaced
Compound fracture?
Displacement with penetration of the skin surface
Comminuted fracture?
Complex fracture resulting in multiple fragments
Stress fracture?
Bone fractures after repeated extra stress i.e. there were some tiny microfractures
Greenstick fracture?
Best known incomplete fracture from an impact to a child’s supple long bone. Is fast healing.
Pathologic fracture?
Due to intrinsic dz of the bone. The force would not have broken a normal bone. Osteoporosis, cancer, OI.
Describe the process of bone healing.
- Bleeding and clot formation
- Ingrowth of neovascularization + FBs organize the clot and begin removal of dead cortex
- Callus formation: ingrowth of osteocytes + new or woven bone formation
- Cartilage produced at surface of callus
- Months of bone remodeling
- Reduction over time leads to complete bone healing
What is a fibrous nonunion?
Pathological bone healing that occurs when the ends of the fractured bones are not closely enough aligned with each other to form a callus. Imperfect bone healing.
What can easily happen to spongy bone where it has an end-artery pattern of vascularization and the artery is compromised?
Infarction/osteonecrosis
Osteonecrosis is most likely to occur where?
Convex surfaces of joints. Feared result is detachment of articular cartilage.
Osteonecrosis of the femoral head is a complication of what?
Sickle cell dz, decompression sickness, femoral neck fracture/dislocation. Also linked to alcohol abuse and glucocorticoid use.
What is osteomyelitis?
Bone infection
What is the most common agent of osteomyelitis?
Pyogenic organisms
How does osteomyelitis develop?
Hematogenous spread, contiguous spread, or in pts with vascular insufficiency (poor wound healing)
Hematogenous osteomyelitis is most common in what patient population?
Children 2-5 yo
What are the risk factors for osteomyelitis?
Presence of foreign materials, diabetes, orthopedic surgery, adjacent infection, peripheral vascular dz, sickle cell dz, congenital phagocyte function defect.
Pyogenic osteomyelitis begins where and is spread how?
Metaphysis and can spread hematogenously.
What is the usual causative agent of pyogenic osteomyelitis?
S. aureus
What is usual causative agent of pyogenic osteomyelitis in pts with sickle cell?
Salmonella
What is Potts dz?
Vertebral infection by TB with collapse of vertebral column.
Neonatal congenital syphilis has a characteristic feature of osteomyelitis in which bones?
Nose and shin bones. Leads to saddle nose and saber shins.
What can develop in the bone or sinus tract of long-standing chronic osteomyelitis?
Squamous cell carcinoma
What is a sequestrum?
When osteomyelitis spreads inside the bone resulting in necrosis and partial resorption of the bone.