The Back Flashcards
The most superior vertebral spinous process that can be palpated is at the base of the neck. Which vertebra is this?
C7
What is the vertebral level corresponding with the iliac crests?
L4
What is lumbago?
Lower back pain
What do the dimples in the skin above your butt correlate to?
Posterior superior iliac spines.
How many vertebrae are there? How are they divided?
~33 total.
7 cervical 12 thoracic 5 lumbar 5 sacral some coccygeal
What are the possible motions of the spine?
Flexion, extension, lateral bending, and rotation.
How many natural curvatures of the spine are there?
4 total: 2 primary and 2 secondary.
Describe the primary and secondary spinal curvatures.
The primary curves are kyphoses of the thoracic and sacral regions and are concave with respect to the anterior body.
The secondary curves are lordoses of the cervical and lumbar regions and are concave with respect to the posterior body.
Tight hip flexors (iliopsoas and rectus femoris) and/or weak hamstrings may result in what type of lumbar disorder?
Anterior pelvic tilt and lumbar lordosis (hyperlordosis).
Tight hamstrings may result in what type of lumbar disorder?
Posterior pelvic tilt and hypolordosis (flatback).
What type of spinal condition do many women in late pregnancy suffer from?
Lordosis
What is congenital kyphosis?
Failure of thoracic spinal separation during development –> hyper-kyphotic thoracic spine.
What is scoliosis and how is it quantified?
Lateral bending of the spine. Cobb angle measures it.
What is kyphoscoliosis?
A combination of lateral bending and excessive thoracic curvature
What is the major function of the transverse processes of the vertebrae?
To act as levers for muscles.
Which vertebral joints are oriented in a sagittal plane? What motions does this allow for and what motions does this inhibit?
Facet joints of the lumbar vertebrae - allows for flexion/extension and lateral bending but not rotation.
In a dissection, which part of the vertebrae are cut in order to access the spinal cord?
Cuts are made through the lamina bilaterally on each vertebra.
Through what vertebral structure do spinal nerves pass?
The intervertebral foramen.
What nerves supply sensation from the facet joints of the vertebrae?
Dorsal primary rami from the spinal nerves. Each facet joint receives sensory fibers from dorsal primary rami of two adjacent spinal nerves.
What is the difference between a bulging and a herniated intervertebral disk?
Bulging is when the annulus fibrosus bulges into the spinal canal (vertebral foramen). Herniation is when the nucleus pulposus herniates into the spinal canal.