Radiology

Question 1

Cortex vs medulla of bone

Answer 1

Outside compact bone and inside spongy bone respectively

• medulla = darker
• cortex = Lighter

Question 2

Why is medulla darker than cortex?

Answer 2

Medulla contains yellow marrow which is fat whereas cortex only contains bone.

• bone more radiolucent than fat.

Question 3

Fracture “mimics”

Answer 3

Sesamoid bones

Unclosed synchondroses

Old fractures

Apophyses

Nutrient channels

Question 4

Types of stress fractures

Answer 4

Fatigue = abnormal stress on normal bone

Insufficient = normal stress on abnormal bone

Fatigue is most common and most commonly occurs in lower leg

Question 5

Distraction vs Overriding fractures

Answer 5

Distraction = obvious space between fracture fragments

Overriding =. Fragments overlap each other.

Question 6

Describing fractures

Answer 6

Always describe the distal fragment in respect to the proximal fragment.

Question 7

Fracture descriptions

Answer 7

/type of articular involvement

Complete/incomplete

of fragments

Direction of displacement (medial/lateral)

angle of displacement (medial/lateral)

Closed or open

Question 8

Fracture definition

Answer 8

Disruption of all or part of the bone cortex

Question 9

Fracture lines characteristics

Answer 9

Are usually black linear lines

Tend to be sharply angulated lines and can be jagged if fragments have broken off.

Question 10

Accessory ossicles

Answer 10

Accessory ossification centers that do not fuse with the parent bone

Question 11

Most common site for torus fracture in children

Answer 11

Distal metaphysis of the humerus

Question 12

Stress fracture definition

Answer 12

Fractures that occurring in bone due to mismatched bone strength and chronic mechanical stress being repeatedly placed on the bone

Question 13

Apophysis

Answer 13

Site of a tendon or ligament attachment on a bone. Often can be mistaken as a fracture on a radiograph

Question 14

Lipohemathrosis

Answer 14

Fat-fluid level occurs when fat is on top of blood in a bursa

Almost always indicative of an intra articular fracture

Question 15

Avulsion fracture

Answer 15

Fracture produced by the fracture fragment being pulled from the parent bone by a tendon or ligament

Question 16

Fracture complications

Answer 16

Delayed union/ nonunion of fragments

Osteoporosis

Myositis ossicans

Vascular damage

Growth disturbance

Traumatic arthritis

Question 17

Salter-Harris fractures

Answer 17

Epiphyseal plate fractures in children

Use SALTR to determine classification

Question 18

SALTR

Answer 18

Slipped (1)
Above (2)
Lower (3)
Through or transverse (4)
Ruined, rammed or crushed (5)

1-5 rating (1 being best prognosis, 5 being worst)

Question 19

Slipped and Above SALTR classifications

Answer 19

Fractures through the growth plate only and fractures most of growth plate and some metaphysis respectively.

Both good prognosis with Above being the most common fracture

Question 20

Lower, Transverse and ruined SALTR classifications

Answer 20

Longitudinal through growth plate and some epiphysis, directly through metaphysis, epiphysis and growth plate, and complete crushing of the growth plate but no fracture.

All poor prognosis with crushing/ ruined being the worst.

reserve and proliferative zones are damaged in all three