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Anterior
Cruciate Ligament (ACL)
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One of
the two central ligaments in the knee, the ACL crosses from the underside
of the femur (the thigh bone) to the top of the tibia (the bigger bone in
the lower leg). The cruciate ligaments are so called because they cross
each other in front of the knee. "Cruciate" taken from the Latin
"crux" for "cross" means "in the form of a
cross."
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Antibiotics
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A
substance, such as penicillin or streptomycin, produced by or derived from
certain fungi, bacteria, and other organisms, that can destroy or inhibit
the growth of other microorganisms. Antibiotics are widely used in the
prevention and treatment of infectious diseases.
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Arthritis
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Inflammation
of a joint.
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Arthroscope
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A
fibre-optic instrument for the visual examination of the interior of a
joint (e.g. the knee or shoulder)
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Arthroscopy
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Examination
of the interior of a joint, such as the knee, using a type of endoscope that is
inserted into the joint through a small incision.
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Cartilage
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A
tough, elastic, fibrous connective tissue found in various parts of the
body, such as the joints, outer ear, and larynx. A major constituent of the
embryonic and young vertebrate skeleton, it is converted largely to bone
with maturation.
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CAT Scan
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Computerised
axial tomography, X ray technique allowing relatively safe, painless, and
rapid diagnosis in previously inaccessible areas of the body.
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Chondromalacia patellae
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Softening
of the articular cartilage of the knee-cap. The articular cartilage is the
cartilage lining under the knee-cap that articulates with the knee joint.
Under normal circumstances, it is smooth and shiny, so that it glides
smoothly along the articular groove of the femur as the knee bends. When it
"softens", it may break down, causing irregularities along the
undersurface of the patella.
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Diagnosis
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The
act or process of identifying or determining the nature and cause of a
disease or injury through evaluation of patient history, examination, and
review of laboratory data.
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Endoscope
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An instrument
for examining visually the interior of a bodily canal or a hollow organ
such as the colon, bladder, or stomach.
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Epiphysis
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The
growing end of a long bone.
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Femur
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A bone
of the leg situated between the pelvis and knee. It is the largest and
strongest bone in the body.
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FRCS (Ed)
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Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Title awarded after
examination; holder becomes a "Mr."
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FRCS (Eng)
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Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
Title awarded after
examination; holder becomes a "Mr."
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GMC
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General
Medical Council. GMC is the licensing body for all doctors who want to work
in the United Kingdom.
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Gout
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A
disturbance of uric-acid metabolism occurring predominantly in males,
characterized by painful inflammation of the joints, especially of the feet
and hands, and arthritic attacks resulting from elevated levels of uric
acid in the blood and the deposition of urate crystals around the joints.
The condition can become chronic and result in deformity.
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Hamstring
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Either
of two groups of tendons bounding the upper part of the popliteal space at
the back of the knee and forming the tendons of insertion of some muscles
of the back of the thigh
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Imperial College
Medical School
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ICSM
is the largest medical school in the UK with 675 academic members of staff
and 2,500 research and support staff.The Imperial College School of
Medicine was created in 1995 when Imperial College and its existing medical
school, St Mary's Hospital Medical School were joined by the National Heart
and Lung Institute. It further expanded when the Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School and the Royal Postgraduate Medical School joined in August 1997.
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Knee
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The joint between the
thigh and the lower leg, formed by the articulation of the femur and the tibia and covered
anteriorly by the
patella.
The region of the leg that encloses and supports this joint.
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Ligament
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A
sheet or band of tough, fibrous tissue connecting bones or cartilages at a
joint or supporting an organ.
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Meniscus
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Either
of two crescent-shaped lamellae of fibrocartilage that border and partly
cover the articulating surfaces of the tibia and femur at the knee
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MRI Scan
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Magnetic
resonance imaging. MRI is a way of getting pictures of various parts of
your body without the use of x-rays, unlike regular x-rays pictures and CAT scans. A MRI scanner
consists of a large and very strong magnet in which the patient lies. A
radio wave antenna is used to send signals to the body and then receive
signals back. These returning signals are converted into pictures by a
computer attached to the scanner. Pictures of almost any part of your body
can be obtained at almost any particular angle.
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Osgood-Schlatters Disease
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An
osteochondritis of the tuberosity of the tibia that occurs especially among
adolescent males.
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Osteomyelitis
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An
acute or chronic infection of the bone and bone marrow characterized by
pain, high fever, and an abscess at the site of infection. The infection,
which may be caused by a variety of microorganisms, reaches the bone
through an open wound or fracture or through the bloodstream. Treatment
includes antibiotics
and sometimes surgery.
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Osteoarthritis
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Arthritis
of middle age characterised by degenerative and sometimes hypertrophic
changes in the bone and cartilage of one or more joints and a progressive
wearing down of opposing joint surfaces with consequent distortion of joint
position usually without bony stiffening called also: degenerative
arthritis, degenerative joint disease, hypertrophic arthritis.
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Osteochondritis Dissecans
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Lesions
thought to be caused by injury to the bone underneath the joint surface by
a twisting type injury. Some are actual chip type fractures, while others
may result from injury to the bone's blood supply leading to an area of the
bone actually dying.
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Orthopaedic Surgeon
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A
surgeon specialising in the branch of medicine that deals with the
prevention or correction of injuries or disorders of the skeletal system
and associated muscles, joints, and ligaments.
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Patella
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A flat
triangular bone located at the front of the knee joint. Also called:
kneecap
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Patella Dislocation
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Anatomic
variations in the bones of the knee can occur where one side of the
patello-femoral groove is smaller than normal. This creates a situation
where the groove is too shallow, usually on the outside part of the knee.
In people where the groove is too shallow, their patella may actually slip
out of the groove, causing a patellar dislocation. This is not only painful
when it occurs, but can damage the articular cartilage underneath the
patella. If this occurs repeatedly, degeneration of the patello-femoral
joint occurs fairly rapidly.
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Pyogenic Arthritis
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A
disease caused by the invasion of bacteria into the joint from a nearby
infected wound or from bacteremia (infection in the blood stream). The
infected joint usually becomes hot as well as painful and swollen.
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Rheumatoid Arthritis
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A
chronic disease marked by stiffness and inflammation of the joints,
weakness, loss of mobility, and deformity.
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Rheumatologist
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A
specialist in rheumatology (qv)
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Rheumatology
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The
medical science that deals with the study and treatment of rheumatic
diseases.
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Royal National
Orthopaedic Hospital
Stanmore, Middlesex
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NHS Hospital specialing in the national and
international development of neuro-musculoskeletal services by providing
and integrating the very best research, teaching and patient focused care.
The Institute of Orthopaedics,
part of University College London is also located here.
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Technetium 99 Bone Scan
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A
special test to reveal bone desease that may not show up on Xray. An
intra-venous injection of a short acting and harmless radio isotope is
given which is then taken up by the skeleton at sites of active desease,
(e.g. infection and cancerous deposits.) The uptake then appears as a
"hotspot" in the scan pictures.
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Tendon
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Tough
cord of dense connective tissue that attaches muscle to bone. If the muscle
is thin and wide, the tendon may be a thin sheet. Tendons transfer muscle
power over a distance, e.g., forearm muscles contract and pull on tendons
that pull on finger bones to produce finger movements.
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Tibia
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The
inner and larger of the two bones of the lower human leg, extending from
the knee to the ankle.
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West Middlesex University Hospital
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A
major teaching hospital situated in Isleworth, West London.
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