fracture

1. To break. 2. A break, especially the breaking of a bone or cartilage. [L. fractura, a break]

- apophysial f. separation of apophysis from bone.

- articular f. a f. involving the joint surface of a bone.

- avulsion f. a f. that occurs when a joint capsule, ligament, or muscle insertion of origin is pulled from the bone as a result of a sprain dislocation or strong contracture of the muscle against resistance; as the soft tissue is pulled away from the bone, a fragment (or fragments) remains attached to the soft tissue of the bone. SYN: strain f..

- Barton f. f. of the distal radius with volar subluxation or dislocation of the radiocarpal joint.

- basal skull f. a f. involving the base of the cranium.

- bending f. an injury in which a long bone or bones, usually the radius and ulna, are bent ( i.e., angulated) due to multiple microfractures, none of which can be seen by x-ray imaging.

- Bennett f. f. dislocation of the first metacarpal bone at the carpal-metacarpal joint.

- bimalleolar f. SYN: Pott f..

- birth f. f. occurring during the trauma of delivery or, occasionally, before delivery in infants with osteogenesis imperfecta.

- blow-out f. a f. of the floor of the orbit, without a f. of the rim, produced by a blow on the globe with the force being transmitted via the globe to the orbital floor.

- boxer's f. f. of the neck of a metacarpal bone—typically of the fifth metacarpals.

- capillary f. SYN: hairline f..

- Chance f. a transverse f., usually in the thoracic or lumbar spine, through the body of the vertebra extending posteriorly through the pedicles and the spinous process.

- clay shoveler's f. an avulsion f. of the base of spinous processes of C-7, C-6, or T-1 (in order of prevalence).

- closed f. a f. in which skin is intact at site of f.. SYN: simple f..

- closed skull f. f. with intact overlying scalp and/or mucous membranes. SYN: simple skull f..

- Colles f. a f. of the distal radius with displacement and/or angulation of the distal fragment dorsally.

- comminuted f. a f. in which the bone is broken into more than two fragments.

- comminuted skull f. a f. of the skull with fragmentation of bone.

- complex f. a f. with significant soft tissue injury.

- compound f. f. in which the skin is perforated and there is an open wound down to the site of the f.. SYN: open f..

- compound skull f. SYN: open skull f..

- f. by contrecoup skull f. at a point distant from the site of impact.

- cough f. a f. of a rib or cartilage, usually the fifth or seventh, from vigorous coughing.

- craniofacial dysjunction f. a complex f. in which the facial bones are separated from the cranial bones. SYN: Le Fort III craniofacial dysjunction, Le Fort III f., transverse facial f..

- dentate f. a f. in which the opposing surfaces are rough, with toothed or serrate projections fitting into corresponding indentations.

- depressed f. SYN: depressed skull f..

- depressed skull f. a f. with inward displacement of a part of the calvarium; may or may not be associated with disruption of the underlying dura or cerebral cortex. SYN: depressed f..

- derby hat f. regular cranial concavity in infants; may or may not be associated with f. SYN: dishpan f..

- diastatic skull f. 1. separation of cranial bones at a suture; 2. f. with marked separation of bone fragments.

- direct f. a f., especially of the skull, occurring at the point of injury.

- dishpan f. SYN: derby hat f..

- dislocation f. a f. of a bone near an articulation with a concomitant dislocation of the adjacent.

- double f. SYN: segmental f..

- Dupuytren f. f. of lower part of fibula, with dislocation of ankle.

- epiphysial f., epiphyseal f. separation of the epiphysis of a long bone, caused by trauma. See Salter-Harris classification of epiphysial plate injuries.

- expressed skull f. a f. with outward displacement of a part of the cranium.

- extracapsular f. a f. near a joint, but outside of the line of attachment of the joint capsule.

- fatigue f. f. that occurs in bone subjected to repetitive stress, most often transverse in configuration. SYN: stress f..

- fetal f. SYN: intrauterine f..

- fissured f. SYN: longitudinal f..

- folding f. SYN: torus f..

- freeze f. a procedure for preparing cells or other biological samples for electron microscopy in which the sample is frozen quickly and then broken with a sharp blow. SYN: cryofracture.

- Galeazzi f. f. of the shaft of the radius with dislocation of the distal radioulnar joint.

- Gosselin f. v-shaped f. of distal end of tibia.

- greenstick f. the bending of a bone with incomplete f. involving the convex side of the curve only.

- growing f. linear skull f. in a young child which increases in size, usually as the result of an associated dural tear and arachnoid cyst formation within the f. line.

- Guérin f. a f. of the facial bones in which there is a horizontal f. at the base of the maxillae above the apices of the teeth. SYN: horizontal f., Le Fort I f..

- gutter f. a long, narrow, depressed f. of the skull.

- hairline f. a f. without separation of the fragments, the line of break being hairlike, as seen sometimes in the skull. SYN: capillary f..

- hangman's f. a f. of the cervical spine through the pedicles of C2; may be associated with an anterior dislocation of the C2 vertebral body with respect to C3.

- horizontal f. SYN: Guérin f..

- impacted f. a f. in which one of the fragments is driven into the cancellous bone of the other fragment.

- incomplete f. a f. in which the line of f. does not completely traverse the bone.

- indirect f. a f., especially of the skull, that occurs at a point not at the site of impact.

- intertrochanteric f. f. of the proximal femur located in the metaphyseal bone in the region between the greater and lesser trochanters.

- intraarticular f. f. occurring through the articular surface into the joint.

- intracapsular f. a f. near a joint and within the line of insertion of the joint capsule.

- intrauterine f. a f. of one or more bones of a fetus occurring before birth. SYN: fetal f..

- Le Fort I f. SYN: Guérin f..

- Le Fort II f. SYN: pyramidal f..

- Le Fort III f. SYN: craniofacial dysjunction f..

- linear f. SYN: longitudinal f..

- linear skull f. a skull f. resembling a line.

- longitudinal f. a f. involving the bone in the line of its axis. SYN: fissured f., linear f..

- march f. a fatigue f. of one of the metatarsals.

- Monteggia f. f. of the proximal ulna with dislocation of the head of the radius.

- multiple f. 1. f. at two or more places in a bone; See segmental f.. 2. f. of several bones occurring simultaneously.

- neurogenic f. a f. in bone weakened by disease of the nerve supply.

- oblique f. a f. the line of which runs obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bone.

- occult f. a condition in which there are clinical signs of f. but no radiographic evidence; after 2 to 4 weeks, radiographic imaging shows new bone formation; magnetic resonance imaging frequently confirms the f. before changes are evident on radiography; commonly seen in the navicular bone of the wrist.

- open f. SYN: compound f..

- open skull f. a f. with laceration of overlying scalp and/or mucous membrane. SYN: compound skull f..

- parry f. obsolete term for Monteggia f..

- pathologic f. a f. occurring at a site weakened by preexisting disease, especially neoplasm or necrosis, of the bone.

- pertrochanteric f. a f. through the intertrochanteric region of the femur; a form of extracapsular hip f..

- pilon f. a f. of the distal metaphysis of the tibia extending into the ankle joint.

- ping-pong f. derby hat f..

- pond f. a circular depressed skull f..

- Pott f. f. of the lower part of the fibula and of the malleolus of the tibia, with outward displacement of the foot. SYN: bimalleolar f..

- pyramidal f. a f. of the midfacial skeleton with the principal f. lines meeting at an apex at or near the superior aspect of the nasal bones. SYN: Le Fort II f..

- segmental f. a f. in two parts of the same bone. SYN: double f..

- Shepherd f. a f. of the external tubercle (posterior process) of the talus, sometimes mistaken for a displacement of the os trigonum.

- silver-fork f. a Colles f. of the wrist in which the deformity has the appearance of a fork in profile.

- simple f. SYN: closed f..

- simple skull f. SYN: closed skull f..

- Skillern f. obsolete term for f. of distal radius with greenstick f. of neighboring portion of ulna.

- skull f. a break of the cranium resulting from trauma.

- Smith f. reversed Colles f.; f. of the distal radius with displacement of the fragment toward the palmar (volar) aspect.

- spiral f. a f. the line of which is helical in the bone; usually results from a twisting injury.

- splintered f. a comminuted f. in which the fragments are long and sharp-pointed.

- spontaneous f. a f. occurring without any external injury.

- sprain f. an avulsion f. in which a small portion of adjacent bone has been pulled off.

- stable f. a f. that does not tend to displace once it has been reduced and immobilized.

- stellate f. a f. in which the lines of break radiate from a central point.

- stellate skull f. a skull f. with multiple linear fractures radiating from the site of impact.

- strain f. SYN: avulsion f..

- stress f. SYN: fatigue f..

- subcapital f. an intracapsular f. of the neck of the femur, at the point where the neck of the femur joins the head.

- subperiosteal f. a f. occurring beneath the periosteum, and without displacement.

- supracondylar f. a f. of the distal end of the humerus or femur located above the condylar region.

- toddler's f. a spiral f. of the tibia seen frequently in children 1–2 years of age.

- torsion f. a f. resulting from twisting of the limb.

- torus f. a bone deformity in children in which the bone bends and buckles but does not f.; it occurs commonly in the radius or ulna or both. This f. occurs only in children because their bones are softer than adults. SYN: folding f..

- transcervical f. a f. through the neck of the femur.

- transcondylar f. a f. through condyles of the humerus or femur.

- transverse f. a f., the line of which forms a right angle with the longitudinal axis of the bone.

- transverse facial f. SYN: craniofacial dysjunction f..

- trimalleolar f. a f. of the ankle through the lateral malleolus of the fibula and the medial malleolus and posterior process of the tibia.

- tripod f. a facial f. involving the three supports of the malar prominence, the arch of the zygomatic bone, the zygomatic process of the frontal bone, and the zygomatic process of the maxillary bone.

- unstable f. a f. with an intrinsic tendency to displace after reduction.

- ununited f. a f. in which union between the ends of the bone fails to occur.

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frac·ture 'frak-chər, -shər n

1) the act or process of breaking or the state of being broken specif the breaking of hard tissue (as bone) see POTT'S FRACTURE

2) the rupture (as by tearing) of soft tissue <kidney \fracture>

fracture vt, frac·tured; frac·tur·ing -chə-riŋ, -shriŋ

1) to cause a fracture in <\fracture a rib>

2) to cause a rupture or tear in <a blow that fractured a kidney>

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n.

breakage of a bone, either complete or incomplete. A simple fracture involves a clean break with little damage to surrounding tissues and no break in the overlying skin. If the overlying skin is perforated and there is a wound extending to the fracture site, the fracture is open, and there is a risk of infection (see osteomyelitis). Treatment of a simple fracture includes realignment of the bone ends where there is displacement, immobilization by external splints or internal fixation, followed by rehabilitation. See also Colles' fracture, comminuted fracture, greenstick fracture, pathological fracture, scaphoid fracture, Smith's fracture.

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frac·ture (frakґchər) [L. fractura, from frangere to break] 1. the breaking of a part, especially a bone. 2. a break or rupture in a bone.

PLATE 16 VARIOUS TYPES OF FRACTURES