does so with few “maintenance” requirements and
little complaining. Proper nutrition and regular
physical exercise are about all the bones, muscles,
and connective structures require for most of life.
However, the musculoskeletal system is vulnera-
ble to numerous hereditary, congenital, and
acquired health conditions. Trauma is the most
significant risk to the musculoskeletal structures,
particularly the limbs and joints. Sprains, strains,
and fractures are common injuries. Over time, the
repeated trauma of daily function also takes its
toll. OSTEOARTHRITIS, the consequence of degenera-
tive damage to the joints, is the most common
musculoskeletal ailment, affecting as many as 60
million Americans.
Hereditary and congenital disorders can affect
both the structure and function of the muscu-
loskeletal system—and by extension, of other sys-
tems of the body as well. Connective tissue, the
foundation of the musculoskeletal system, exists
in nearly every body structure. Disorders of con-
nective tissue such as MARFAN SYNDROMEaffect not
only the skeleton and muscles but the walls of the
arteries and the structure of organs. Though many
movement disorders are neurologic in origin, dis-
orders of muscle function such as MUSCULAR DYS-
TROPHYalso affect mobility and motor function.
HEALTH CONDITIONS
OF THE MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEMACHILLES TENDON INJURY ACHONDROPLASIA
ADHESIVE CAPSULITIS ANKLE INJURIES
ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS ARTHROGRYPOSIS
BACK PAIN BAKER’S CYST
BONE CANCER BONE SPUR
BURSITIS CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME
CERVICAL SPONDYLOSIS CHARCOT-MARIE-TOOTH(CMT)
CHONDRITIS DISEASE
CONGENITAL HIP DYSPLASIA CONTRACTURE
CRAMP DISLOCATIONS
DYSTONIA EPICONDYLITIS
FIBROMYALGIA FRACTURE
GOUT HERNIA
HERNIATED NUCLEUS PULPOSUS INFECTIOUS ARTHRITIS
KNEE INJURIES KYPHOSIS
LIPOMA LORDOSIS
MARFAN SYNDROME MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY
MYASTHENIA GRAVIS MYOPATHY
MYOTONIA NEUROGENIC ARTHROPATHY
OSGOOD-SCHLATTER DISEASE OSTEOARTHRITIS
OSTEOGENESIS IMPERFECTA OSTEOMALACIA
OSTEOMYELITIS OSTEOPENIA
OSTEOPETROSIS OSTEOPOROSIS
PAGET’S DISEASE OF THE BONE PATELLOFEMORAL SYNDROME
PLANTAR FASCIITIS POLYDACTYLY
POLYMYOSITIS REITER’S SYNDROME
REPETITIVE MOTION INJURIES RHABDOMYOMA
ROTATOR CUFF IMPINGEMENT SCIATICA
SYNDROME SKELETAL DYSPLASIA
SPASM SPINAL STENOSIS
SPRAINS AND STRAINS SYNDACTYLY
SYNOVITIS TALIPES EQUINOVARUS
TEMPOROMANDIBULAR DISORDERS TENDONITIS
TORTICOLLISTraditions in Medical History
Not until the end of the Renaissance did physi-
cians and scientists fully understand the structure
of the human musculoskeletal system. The skele-
ton represented death; only without flesh was it
visible. Seeing a bone, even in life, was never a
good thing. Fractures, particularly compound frac-
tures in which the bone ends broke through the
surface of the skin, were frequently fatal. INFEC-
TIONwas nearly inescapable. Fractures that did not
kill often maimed; ancient doctors had little
knowledge of biomechanics and without guidance
from technology commonplace today, setting a
fracture was at best an imprecise art.
The discovery of the X-RAY—electromagnetic
energy capable of penetrating soft tissue—in the
late 19th century finally gave doctors a means to
examine the bones of living people. With X-ray
doctors could see the bone ends of fractures and
realign those ends for proper HEALING, and ortho-
pedic medicine was born. Today X-ray remains the
quintessential diagnostic tool for skeletal injuries.Breakthrough Research and Treatment Advances
Today’s technology allows incredible visualization
of musculoskeletal structures, well beyond the
black-and-white X-ray, and of musculoskeletal
functions—with minimal intrusion into the body.
Nucleotide bone scans, MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAG-
ING(MRI), ULTRASOUND, andCOMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY
(CT) SCANallow doctors to “see” injuries such as
torn ligaments, ruptured tendons, and stress frac-
tures. Arthroscopy uses fiberoptic technology toThe Musculoskeletal System 295