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Joint Contracture
In pathology, a contracture is a shortening of muscles, tendons, skin, and nearby soft tissues that causes the joints to shorten and become very stiff, preventing normal movement. A contracture is usually permanent, but less commonly can be temporary (such as in McArdle disease), or resolve over time but reoccur later in life (such as in Bethlem myopathy 1). It is usually in response to prolonged hypertonic spasticity in a concentrated muscle area, such as is seen in the tightest muscles of people with conditions like spastic cerebral palsy, but can also be due to the congenital abnormal development of muscles and connective tissue in the womb. Contractures develop usually when normally elastic tissues such as muscles or tendons are replaced by inelastic tissues (fibrosis). This results in the shortening and hardening of these tissues, ultimately causing rigidity, joint deformities and a total loss of movement around the joint. Most of the physical therapy, occupational thera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muscle Contracture
Muscle contractures can occur for many reasons, such as paralysis, muscular atrophy, and forms of muscular dystrophy. Fundamentally, the muscle and its tendons shorten, resulting in reduced flexibility. Various interventions can slow, stop, or even reverse muscle contractures, ranging from physical therapy to surgery. Cause Immobilization Joints are usually immobilized in a shortened position resulting in changes within the joint connective tissue, and the length of the muscle and associated tendon. Prolonged immobilization facilitates tissue proliferation which impinges on the joint space. Maintaining a shortened position for a prolonged period of time leads to: fibrous adhesion formation, loss of sarcomeres, and a loss of tissue extensibility. For example, after a fracture when immobilization is done by casting the limb in plaster of paris, the muscle length shortens because the muscle is not used for a large span of time. A common cause for having the ankle lose its f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adhesion (medicine)
Adhesions are fibrous bands that form between tissues and organs, often as a result of injury during surgery. They may be thought of as internal scar tissue that connects tissues not normally connected. Pathophysiology Adhesions form as a natural part of the body's healing process after surgery in a similar way that a scar forms. The term "adhesion" is applied when the scar extends from within one tissue across to another, usually across a virtual space such as the peritoneal cavity. Adhesion formation post-surgery typically occurs when two injured surfaces are close to one another. According to the "classical paradigm" of adhesion formation, the pathogenesis starts with inflammation and activation of the coagulation system which causes fibrin deposits onto the damaged tissues. The fibrin then connects the two adjacent structures where damage of the tissues occurred. The fibrin acts like a glue to seal the injury and builds the fledgling adhesion, said at this point to be "fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marden–Walker Syndrome
Marden–Walker syndrome (MWS) is a rare autosomal recessive congenital disorder. It is characterized by blepharophimosis, microcephaly, micrognathia, multiple joint contractures, arachnodactyly, camptodactyly, kyphoscoliosis and delayed motor development and is often associated with cystic dysplastic kidneys, dextrocardia, Dandy–Walker malformation and agenesis of corpus callosum. Signs and symptoms Most of the signs of MWS are present during the neonatal period. The most common signs at this state are multiple congenital joint contractures, dysmorphic features with mask-like face, blepharophimosis, ptosis, micrognathia, cleft or high arched palate, low-set ears, arachnodactyly, chest deformation as pectus, kyphoscoliosis and absent deep tendon reflexes are frequent minor malformations have also been described and consist of renal anomalies, cardiovascular abnormalities, hypospadias, omphalomesenteric duct, hypertrophic pyloric stenosis and duodenal bands, hypoplastic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freeman–Sheldon Syndrome
Freeman–Sheldon syndrome (FSS) is a very rare form of multiple congenital contracture (MCC) syndromes ( arthrogryposes) and is the most severe form of distal arthrogryposis (DA). It was originally described by Ernest Arthur Freeman and Joseph Harold Sheldon in 1938.James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). ''Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology''. (10th ed.). Saunders. . As of 2007, only about 100 cases had been reported in medical literature. Signs and symptoms The symptoms of Freeman–Sheldon syndrome include drooping of the upper eyelids, strabismus, low-set ears, a long philtrum, gradual hearing loss, scoliosis and walking difficulties. Gastroesophageal reflux has been noted during infancy, but usually improves with age. The tongue may be small, and the limited movement of the soft palate may cause nasal speech. Often there is an H- or Y-shaped dimpling of the skin over the chin. Cause FSS is caused by genetic changes. Krakowiak et al. (1998) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clubfoot
Clubfoot is a congenital or acquired defect where one or both feet are rotated inward and downward. Congenital clubfoot is the most common congenital malformation of the foot with an incidence of 1 per 1000 births. In approximately 50% of cases, clubfoot affects both feet, but it can present unilaterally causing one leg or foot to be shorter than the other. Most of the time, it is not associated with other problems. Without appropriate treatment, the foot deformity will persist and lead to pain and impaired ability to walk, which can have a dramatic impact on the quality of life. The exact cause is usually not identified. Both genetic and environmental factors are believed to be involved. There are two main types of congenital clubfoot: idiopathic (80% of cases) and secondary clubfoot (20% of cases). The idiopathic congenital clubfoot is a multifactorial condition that includes environmental, vascular, positional, and genetic factors. There appears to be hereditary component ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burn Scar Contracture
Burn scar contracture is the tightening of the skin after a second or third degree burn. When skin is burned, the surrounding skin begins to pull together, resulting in a contracture. It needs to be treated as soon as possible because the scar can result in restriction of movement around the injured area. This is mediated by myofibroblasts. Diagnosis Treatment The treatment of burn scar contracture and deformity begins upon hospitalization. Wound care and functional outcomes can be predicted from the initial assessment of wound depth and location. Epidermal and partial thickness wounds heal in 1 to 3 weeks through epithelial migration from the wound edges and epithelial budding from the appendages of the sweat and hair glands. These wounds pose only a small risk of contracture and hypertrophic scarring. Full-thickness (FT) injuries cause dermal wound healing, which is characterized by maturation (contraction and increased tensile strength), proliferation (collagen synthesis l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthrogryposis
Arthrogryposis (AMC) describes congenital joint contracture in two or more areas of the body. It derives its name from Greek, literally meaning 'curving of joints' (', 'joint'; ', late Latin form of late Greek ', 'hooking'). Children born with one or more joint contractures have abnormal fibrosis of the muscle tissue causing muscle shortening, and therefore are unable to perform active extension and flexion in the affected joint or joints. AMC has been divided into three groups: amyoplasia, distal arthrogryposis, and syndromic (is a syndrome or part of a syndrome). Amyoplasia is characterized by severe joint contractures and muscle weakness. Distal arthrogryposis mainly involves the hands and feet. Types of arthrogryposis with a primary neurological or muscle disease belong to the syndromic group. Signs and symptoms Often, every joint in a patient with arthrogryposis is affected; in 84% all limbs are involved, in 11% only the legs, and in 4% only the arms are involved. Every joint ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hypertrophic Scar
Hypertrophy is the increase in the volume of an organ or tissue due to the enlargement of its component cells. It is distinguished from hyperplasia, in which the cells remain approximately the same size but increase in number. Although hypertrophy and hyperplasia are two distinct processes, they frequently occur together, such as in the case of the hormonally induced proliferation and enlargement of the cells of the uterus during pregnancy. Eccentric hypertrophy is a type of hypertrophy where the walls and chamber of a hollow organ undergo growth in which the overall size and volume are enlarged. It is applied especially to the left ventricle of heart. Sarcomeres are added in series, as for example in dilated cardiomyopathy (in contrast to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a type of concentric hypertrophy, where sarcomeres are added in parallel). Gallery Gould Pyle 234.jpg, Breasts Hypertrophied clitoris.jpg, Clitoris Head of a boy with hypertrophy of the ear Wellcome L0062496 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elastogenesis
Elastic fibers (or yellow fibers) are an essential component of the extracellular matrix composed of bundles of proteins (elastin) which are produced by a number of different cell types including fibroblasts, endothelial, smooth muscle, and airway epithelial cells. These fibers are able to stretch many times their length, and snap back to their original length when relaxed without loss of energy. Elastic fibers include elastin, elaunin and oxytalan. Elastic fibers are formed via elastogenesis, a highly complex process involving several key proteins including fibulin-4, fibulin-5, latent transforming growth factor β binding protein 4, and microfibril associated protein 4. In this process tropoelastin, the soluble monomeric precursor to elastic fibers is produced by elastogenic cells and chaperoned to the cell surface. Following excretion from the cell, tropoelastin self associates into ~200 nm particles by coacervation, an entropically driven process involving interacti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burn Scar Contracture
Burn scar contracture is the tightening of the skin after a second or third degree burn. When skin is burned, the surrounding skin begins to pull together, resulting in a contracture. It needs to be treated as soon as possible because the scar can result in restriction of movement around the injured area. This is mediated by myofibroblasts. Diagnosis Treatment The treatment of burn scar contracture and deformity begins upon hospitalization. Wound care and functional outcomes can be predicted from the initial assessment of wound depth and location. Epidermal and partial thickness wounds heal in 1 to 3 weeks through epithelial migration from the wound edges and epithelial budding from the appendages of the sweat and hair glands. These wounds pose only a small risk of contracture and hypertrophic scarring. Full-thickness (FT) injuries cause dermal wound healing, which is characterized by maturation (contraction and increased tensile strength), proliferation (collagen synthesis l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
