General examination
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Transcript General examination
Special features to
orthopaedic history and
examination
DR. MOHAMAD KHAIRUDDIN
INTRODUCTION
HISTORY TAKING (symptoms,
previous illness, family, social, drugs,
childhood)
EXAMINATIONS
History taking
Key words IN SYMPTOMS:
Injury
Pain
Stiffness
Swelling
Deformity
Instability
Altered sensibility
Loss of function
Injury
Date of injury
Nature of injury
Mechanism of injury
Pain
Onset
Nature
Site
Intensity
Aggravating & relieving factors
‘referred pain’
stiffness
Refer to joints
‘morning stiffness’ (inflammatory)
Post trauma
Contracted capsule / ligaments
‘locking’ / block
Swelling
Arising sites (soft tissue, bone, joint)
‘tumour’
Edema (trauma)
Haemathrosis / synovial effusion
Deformity
Deformed limbs in position (flexion /
extension)
Curvature (spine kyphosis or scoliosis)
Deformed long bone (bowing tibia,
fractured)
Deformed near the joints (cubitus
varus/valgus, genuvarus/genuvalgus)
Shortening
Affecting growth
weakness
Strength of muscles
Neurological cause
instability
Refer to joint (affecting the stabilization
structure)
‘gives way’
‘Jump out’
Change in sensibility
Neurological cause
Tingling sensation
Numbness
Entrapment of nerve, neurological
claudication
Loss of function
Functional disability
Unable to comb hair, unbutton cloth,
reaching high object
Limit the ability to turn the door knob
Can’t squad, put on the socks
Previous illness
Related to present chief complaint
Not related to present problem
Social History
Work relation to injury
Compensation cover
Adaptation to previous work in the
future
Related associated risk factor
(smoking habit, alcohol consumption,
etc)
Family
Genetic linkage diseases
Highly association (tumour)
Examinations
General examination system
Specific examination
General examination :
LOOK
FEEL
MOVE
Physical examination:
begins from the moment we set eyes on the
patient
OBSERVE -
appearance
posture
general attitude
gait
affected parts or regions
Normal gait :
Gait cycle (sequence of events in each
step)
consists of 4 parts (phases) in
sequence :
- heel strike
- stance phase
- toe off
- swing phase
Abnormal Gait (Heel
strike):
heel pain – steps on the toes rather
than the heel
“slapping movement” immediately after
heel strike is characteristic of foot
drop
Abnormal gait
(stance phase) :
Limping results from pain, shortening, or
instability
pain – ‘hurries’ off the leg on weight
bearing (antalgic gait)
shortening - ipsilateral shoulder droops
instability – hip swings sideways over the
weight bearing leg (Trendelenburg gait)
Abnormal gait (toe off):
fixed flexion of the hip – heel lifts off
too soon
Stiff straight knee – whole body is
heaved up to provide clearance
Abnormal gait
(swing phase) :
Foot drop – avoid tipping, patients
adopts a high-stepping gait
Stiffness (hip & knee) and spasticity
General examination of the
affected parts:
-
exposure of the region
comparing the opposite limb
examine good limb first
follow systematic sequence :
look
feel
move
LOOK :
Skin : scar, colour, and creases
Shape : swelling, lumps, wasting
Position or attitude : deformity
Deformity :
applied to a person, a bone or a joint
person – “short stature”
bone – “bowing”
joint – “unnatural position”
e.g : varus – distal part to the joint
towards the midline
(knee joint : genuvarus)
valgus – away from midline
(knee joint : genuvalgus)
FEEL:
Skin : warm or cold, moist or dry
Soft tissues : lump? Characteritic –
site,margin, consistency,tenderness,
multiplicity
Bones and joints : outlines normal?
effusion?
Tenderness : location?--- what
structures?
MOVE :
measure the range of movement of the
respective joints involved in degrees
Common planes of movement in
respective joints e.g :
flexion/extension,adduction/abduction,
external rotation/internal rotation,
pronation/supination
MOVE :
Move the joint
Not testing the muscle contraction
Performing movement :
- Active
- Passive
MOVE (Active) :
Patient move the joint
Is the movement smooth or hesitant
and painful?
If limitation due to pain present,
passive movement needs caution and
gentle
MOVE (passive):
Examiner move the joints
Record the ROM in each physiological
plane
Abnormal movement :
Joint ‘stiffness’
Three types of stiffness :
1) all movements absent – ‘fixed
joint’ (arthrodesis/ankylosis)
2) all movement limited – ‘irritable
joint’ due to inflammation
3) some movements limited – affect one
plane eg. Meniscus tear, group of
muscles paralysed, bony deformity
Specific examinations
EXAMPLES:
Laxity tests to the joint
Trendelenburg’s hip test
Thomas test for FFD of hip
Limb length measurement
Other assessment :
Peripheral vascular examination
Nervous system examination
Vascular assessment :
Understanding the anatomy of
vascular system to the limbs
Assess for features of vascular
occlusion : diminished pulse
cold extremities
pale or dusky
Neurological
assessment :
What system to assess?
- central (spinal cord)
- peripheral nerve (brachial plexus
or respective peripheral nerves
e.g median,radial,& ulnar nerve,
sciatic nerve)
CLINICAL SKILLS
NEED
FREQUENT
PRACTISE !