Musculoskeletal System

Question 1

Grades of Muscle Strain

Answer 1

Grade 1: Fibre damage: Microscopic. Symptoms: mild pain, activity limitation. Signs: no significant strength loss.

Grade 2: Fibre damage: Tearing of some fibres. Symptoms: moderate pain, activity limitation, weight bearing difficulty. Signs: Loss of strength on testing, swelling and bruising 24-48 hours post injury.

Grade 3: Fibre damage: complete muscle tear of fibre bundle. Symptoms: Marked pain and weight bearing difficulty. Signs: marked strength loss, palpable gap in muscle at injury site, swelling and bruising 24-48 hours post injury.

Question 2

Tendon

Answer 2

Connects muscle to bone.

Question 3

Tendinopathy

Answer 3

An umbrella term that indicates a non rupture injury in a tendon or paratendon that is exacerbated by mechanical loading.

Tendinopathy can be caused when tendons are chronically exposed to volume loading that is beyond their physiological capacity.

It can also be cause by intrinsic factors such as age, or extrinsic factors such as smoking.

Question 4

Fracture

Answer 4

Fractures are a breach in structural continuity of the bone cortex, with a degree of injury to the surrounding soft tissues.

Question 5

Disclocation

Answer 5

A dislocation is an injury to a joint that causes adjoining bones to no longer touch each other.

Question 6

Subluxation

Answer 6

A subluxation is a minor or incomplete dislocation in which the joint surfaces still touch but are not in normal relation to each other.

Question 7

Sprain

Answer 7

A sprain is stretching or tearing of ligaments - the most common location of a sprain is the ankle. To note: sprains are graded in the same way as a muscle strains.

Question 8

Ligament

Answer 8

A ligament is the tough bands of fibrous tissue that connects two bones together in your joints.
The function of a ligament is to provide a passive limit to the amount of movement between your bones. It also helps stabilise a joint.

Question 9

Osteoarthritis

Answer 9

Osteoarthritis is when the protective cartilage on the ends of the bones at a joint break down, causing pain, swelling, and problems moving the joint. Bony growths can develop, and the area can become red and swollen.

Risk factors include: ageing, genetics, and mechanical loading.

Question 10

Rheumatoid Athritis

Answer 10

Rheumatoid arthritis is another type of arthritis that is caused by an autoimmune response.