Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing

Medical Terminology

Physical examination terms

When a patient seeks medical help for a skeletal problem, it’s usually because of a physical mishap.
Here are some terms related to examination of the skeletal system that you’ll need to know:
1. angular—at an angle
2. circular—circlelike or round
3. crepitus—a cracking noise or the sensation that’s commonly felt when the hand is placed over
a fracture site and the broken bone ends are moved
4. posture—the position of the limbs or the body as a whole
5. range of motion—the total degree of motion or joint movement
6. symmetry—equality of two sides of the body.
Movement and range of motion
Common terms used to describe movement and range of motion in joints include:
1. abduction—moving away from the midline
2. adduction—moving toward the midline
3. circumduction—moving in a circular manner
4. extension—straightening or increasing the joint angle
5. flexion—bending or decreasing the joint angle
6. pronation—turning downward
7. internal rotation—turning toward midline
8. external rotation—turning away from midline
9. supination—turning upward.

Common complaints
Patients with joint injuries usually complain of pain, swelling, or stiffness, and they may have
noticeable deformities. A deformity can also occur with a bone fracture, which causes sharp pain when
the patient moves the affected area. Common terms used to describe patient complaints include:
1. arthralgia—pain in a joint
2. arthredema—joint swelling
3. arthropyosis—pus formation in a joint cavity
4. bursitis—inflammation of a bursa, the fluid-filled sac that prevents friction within a joint
5. chondralgia—pain originating in the cartilage
6. chondritis—inflammation of the cartilage
7. chondromalacia—abnormal softening of the cartilage
8. coxitis—inflammation of the hip joint
9. epiphysitis—inflammation of the epiphysis of a bone
10. hemarthrosis—blood in a joint cavity
11. hydrarthrosis—accumulation of watery fluid in a joint cavity
12. kyphosis—the Greek word for hunchback, an abnormally increased convexity in the curvature
of the thoracic spine
13. lordosis—forward curvature of the lumbar spine; also known as sway back
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology

14. lumbago—pain in the lower back (lumbar) region

15. ostealgia—bone pain
16. osteitis—inflammation of bone
17. osteochondritis—inflammation of bone and cartilage
18. osteolysis—degeneration of bone from calcium loss

Disorders
Disorders of the skeletal system include fractures, dislocations, herniations, cancer, and other diseases.

Fractures and other injuries

Fractures, traumatic injuries or breaks in bone tissue, most commonly occur in the long bones of the
arms and legs. They can occur in all age-groups in any portion of the skeletal system. Fractures can be
caused by direct injury or can occur spontaneously when bone is weakened by disease; the latter is
called a pathologic fracture.
Closed (simple) fracture is seen when the broken bone doesn’t protrude through the skin. Open
(compound) fracture occurs when the bone breaks through the skin, causing tissue damage.
Fractures can be classified according to the bone fragment position or by the fracture line:
1. Colles’ fracture—a fracture of the radius at the lower end of the wrist in which the bone
fragment is displaced backward
2. linear fracture—a fracture that runs along the long axis of a bone
3. comminuted fracture—a bone is broken into two or more fragments
4. greenstick fracture—involves a break in only one part of the bone thickness
5. transverse fracture—the fracture line is perpendicular to a bone’s long axis
6. spiral fracture—the fracture line goes around, or spirals, the bone.
7. oblique—the fracture line is at an angle or diagonal.
A dislocation is the displacement of a bone from its normal position within the joint. It can occur at
birth, called a congenital dislocation, or may be caused by a disease or trauma. With a dislocation,
joint tissue is torn and stretched, possibly rupturing blood vessels. Subluxation, partial dislocation
that separates the joint’s movable surfaces, occurs most commonly in the shoulder, hip, and knee.
Herniated disk, a ruptured area in the cartilage that cushions the intervertebral disks of the spinal
column, is a painful condition. The soft, central cartilage balloons out from the disk and puts pressure
on the nerve roots.
Herniation can happen suddenly with lifting or twisting or may result from degenerative joint disease
and other chronic conditions.
Here are some other injuries related to the skeletal system that you may encounter:
1. Bunions are localized areas of swelling that occur on the foot near the joint of the big toe.
They’re caused by inflammation and fibrosis of the bursae.
2. Calluses are hard bone formations that may occur at the site of bone fractures.

Diseases
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology

Some of the most common diseases of the skeletal system and terms to describe skeletal disorders are
presented here:
1. Ankylosing spondylitis is a slow, progressive inflammatory disease of the spine, the sacroiliac
joint, and the larger joints of the extremities (hips, knees, and shoulders) that leads to a fibrous
or bony ankylosis (immobility) and deformity.
2. Osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative arthritis, affects the joints of the hand, knee, hip,
and vertebrae. It’s a major cause of disability.
3. Osteomalacia is softening of the bones that’s characterized by inadequate mineralization of
newly formed bone matrix due to vitamin D deficiency; it’s the adult form of rickets.
4. Osteomyelitis is an inflammation of the bone, bone marrow, and surrounding soft tissue that’s
caused by pyogenic (pus-producing) bacteria.
5. Osteoporosis is a disorder in which bone mass is reduced, leading to enhanced bone fragility
and an increased fracture risk.
6. Rickets is a condition of abnormal bone growth in children caused by insufficient vitamin D,
calcium, and phosphorus.
7. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disorder that affects the synovial membranes.
Painful inflammation of the joints may lead to crippling deformities and affect many organ
systems.
8. Scurvy is a condition caused by lack of vitamin C in the diet, which results in abnormal bones
and teeth.

Bone tumors
Bone tumors can be benign (noncancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Here are some tumor types:
1. Osteochondroma is a common tumor that causes projections (spurs) at the end of long bones,
especially the knees, ankles, hips, shoulders, and elbows.
2. Osteosarcoma is a fast-growing malignant tumor of skeletal tissue with a high mortality rate.
Common sites of involvement are the tibia, femur, and humerus. This tumor commonly
metastasizes to the lungs.
3. Chondrosarcoma is a large, slow-growing malignant tumor that affects the hyaline cartilage. It
occurs most often in the femur, spine, pelvis, ribs, or scapulae.

Treatments
Noninvasive treatment for bone and joint injuries includes:
1. a splint, which is a removable appliance that immobilizes, restrains, and supports the injured or
displaced body part
2. a cast, which is a rigid dressing that’s placed around an injured body part to support,
immobilize, and protect it and promote healing
3. a closed reduction, which is a manual alignment of a fracture and may precede the application
of a cast
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology

4. traction, which uses a system of weights and pulleys to immobilize and relieve pressure on a
fractured bone to maintain proper position and to facilitate healing.
Some fractures require internal fixation devices, such as pins, plates, screws, wires, and surgical
cement, to stabilize the bone fragments. An open reduction with internal fixation is a surgical
procedure that allows the surgeon to directly align the fractured bone and apply internal
fixation devices.
These terms relate to invasive treatment of joints and bones:
1. Arthrectomy is the excision of a joint.
2. In arthrodesis, a bone graft (typically from the patient’s iliac crest) is used to fuse joint surfaces;
it’s called spondylosyndesis when this procedure is applied to the
3. vertebrae.
4. Arthroplasty surgically reconstructs a joint.
5. Bone marrow transplant involves I.V. administration of marrow aspirated from the donor’s
bones to a recipient.
6. In chemonucleolysis, a drug is injected into a herniated disk that dissolves the nucleus
pulposus, the pulpy, semifluid center of the disk.
7. Costectomy is the surgical excision of a rib.
8. Diskectomy is the excision of an intervertebral disk.
9. In hip replacement, a diseased hip joint is replaced with a prosthesis (artificial substitute for a
missing body part).
10. Laminectomy is the surgical excision of the lamina.
11. Laminotomy is the transection of a vertebral lamina.
12. Ostectomy is the excision of a bone or part of a bone.
13. Osteotomy is an incision or transection of a bone.
14. A sternotomy is a cut made through the sternum.

Video links:
Skeletal system
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38MsEkhdECM
Osteoporosis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYGkT6OrBk0
Osteoarthritis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41IMR_Dp5bs
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology
Skeletal Disorder English for Nursing
Medical Terminology