MSK Radiographs Flashcards
Demographics
Name, DOB, hospital number, age, sex
Previous films
Other orientations (AP and another view eg. Lateral)
Radiograph detail
Date
Type
Area of body eg. RHS/LHS
Adequacy (above and below joint, rotation, penetration)
Interpretation mnemonic
ABCS
Briefly mention any abnormalities first
Alignment
Joints and bones- look for dislocation or subluxation
Bones
Cortex- trace around cortex to look for fractures
Bone fragments
Texture of bone between the cortex eg. evidence of lysis
Cartilage
Joint spaces
Disruption of joint contours
Signs of OA/RA/psoriatic/gout etc.
Soft tissues
Disruption
Swelling
Foreign bodies or calcification
To complete
Examine other films and take a history
Fracture description system
SOD
Site
Which bone
Intra or extraarticular fracture
Position eg. Proximal/middle/distal third
Obliquity
Completeness (complete or incomplete fracture)
Type of fracture (ie. spiral, comminuted etc.)
Skin penetration
Displacement
This is displacement of the distal fragment to the body
Anterior/posterior
Angulation- change in bone axis, ie. Dorsal/palmar, varus/valgus, radial/ulnar
Translation- have fractured bones moved away from one another
Glossary of terms
Impacted- ends of fracture are compressed together
Comminuted- more than 2 detached bone fragments
Stable- likely to stay in sound position during healing
Unstable- likely to change position
Osteoarthritis
LOSS
Loss of joint space
Osteophytes
Subchondral cysts
Subchondral sclerosis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Loss of joint space
Periarticular osteopenia
Juxtarticular erosions
Soft tissue swelling
Psoriatic arthritis
Central erosions (pencil in cup appearance)
Gout
Punched out lesions in bone (peri articulations tophi)
Pseudo gout
Chondrocalcinosis
Types of complete fracture
Transverse- right angle to shaft Oblique- fracture at angle to shaft Spiral- twisting injury Comminuted- 2 or more bone fragments Impacted- fractured bone forced together
Types of incomplete fracture
Don’t involve the whole cortex, and commonly occur in children
Torus/buckle
Bowing
Green stick
Salter Harris
