Diagnostic Testing

To diagnose osteoarthritis, the doctor will collect information on personal and family medical history, perform a physical examination and order diagnostic tests. Further tests such as X-rays or blood tests are not usually necessary to confirm a diagnosis of osteoarthritis, although they may be used to rule out other possible causes of the symptoms, such as rheumatoid arthritis or a fractured bone. X-rays can also allow doctors to assess the level of damage to the joints but this is rarely helpful as the extent of damage visible on an X-ray isn’t a good indicator of how severe the symptoms really are.

An anterior cruciate ligament tear can be confirmed by the Lachman test, the dynamic extension test, and the Pivot jerk test. The Lachman test and dynamic extension test is helpful in, “making a diagnosis, particularly in the acute injury.” (1) The lateral pivot test reproduces, “the rotatory subluxation that occurs in ACL defiency. The test is difficult to perform and takes residents and fellows in my practice approximately three months of intensive training to be able to adequately perform the jerk test in the unanaesthetised patient.”(1) The test is important because the demonstration of the lateral pivot jerk is the replication of the instability that the patient has. The initial goals of treatment immediately after injury are to reduce pain, reduce

The knee is a hinge joint which is needed for movement. The joint is made by the femur and the tibia, and also contains the patella which acts as a shield for the joint. In knees with osteoarthritis, the cartilage on the ends of the bones deteriorates, causing the bones to rub against each other. X-rays can be used for the diagnosis of osteoarthritis; the images would reveal damage and other changes related to osteoarthritis. With osteoarthritis of the knees, the patient would experience progressively increasing pain, stiffness, and they would

The test has the physician move the patellar back and forth while the patient flexes the knee at 30 degrees (Saladin, 1998, p. 44). This test helps diagnose how severe the patella is dislocated and decide the best treatment option. Another test a physician can do is called the patella tracking assessment where they have the patient single leg squat and then stand (Slamaian). If the “patella that slips medially on early flexion is called the J sign, and indicates imbalance between the VMO and lateral structures” (Saladin, 1998, p. 41). Both of these test help diagnose the correct treatment, the difference is the patellar apprehension test is used for more severe cases but both lead to the best treatment

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the four main ligaments in the knee joint that connect it to the shin bone (tibia) and thigh bone (femur). It 's located deep within the joint, behind the kneecap (patella), above the shinbone, and below the thighbone. The ACL lies diagonally across the middle of the knee and plays a role in keeping the knee stable during movement. Partial tears of the ACL can occur, but are rare. Most ACL tears are either near-completes or complete tears. After experiencing an ACL tear, an athlete has a 15 times

The patient that I have chosen for my diagnostic reasoning paper is a 47-year-ol-Hispanic female. The presenting problem that I have chosen to use as my patient’s chief complaint is back pain. The only other clues that I have to use in order to help narrow my focus is that she is a female, she is 47-years-old, and she is Hispanic. I do not know how long she has been experiencing pain or how severe her pain is. Given these parameters, I will “cast a wide net” as I evaluate my patient and create my list of differential diagnoses.

Imaging tests will be done to check whether there is damage to blood vessels or nerves around your knee. This may include a test that involves injecting a special dye into your blood vessels and looking at the dye through a CT scan (angiogram). An MRI or Doppler ultrasound could also be done.

A. its unprofessional and may lead to a delay in court hearing or process until it is better understood, or corrected. (Sieter chapter 4)

In many cases, the symptoms that the patient feels after the trauma has occurred can help the doctor make his or her diagnosis. Many times a doctor will ask the patient to recall what happened after the injury was sustained. Usually with an ACL injury, the patient will describe a so-called pop or snap that he or she heard during the impact. Pain, which is not terribly excruciating, will immediately follow, and if the individual tries to stand, he or she will be faced with an overwhelming feeling of instability, the leg will buckle under, and the individual will ultimately fall down onto the ground. Although the patient is experiencing pain, he or she cannot point out exactly where the injury has occurred. Garrick states, “some people say that their knee shifts in position – which it actually does” (118). Other symptoms that may arise are stiffness and swelling which may continue for a long

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament also known as the ACL is deemed the most commonly torn ligament in the knee and can result from both contact and noncontact injuries. Most Anterior Cruciate Ligament injuries result from an extreme force on the lateral side of the person’s knee causing a valgus force which pushes the knee inward (Kisner & Colby, 2012, pp. 802-803). This injury to the side of the knee can also cause a “Terrible Triad” injury which also injures both the medial meniscus and the medial collateral ligament (Kisner & Colby, 2012, p. 803). Our textbook further states that “the most common noncontact mechanism is a rotational mechanism in which the tibia is externally rotated on the planted foot….this mechanism can account for as many as 78% of all ACL injuries” (Kisner & Colby, 2012, p. 803). If the person does not seek medical help with this injury they are susceptible to also injuring the remaining support ligaments as well. Patients usually present with joint effusion; possibly 25 degrees of flexion, joint swelling if blood vessels are involved, limited ROM, stress pain and instability along with quads avoidance gait patterns (Kisner & Colby, 2011, p. 208)

Presentation and Examination: The knee anterior drawer test is a commonly used during orthopedic examinations to evaluate the integrity of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). The test is conducted with the patient supine; hips and knees are flexed at a 45 and 90-degree angles with feet flat on the table. While holding the calf distal to the knee joint pulling suddenly away from the patient tests the anterior drawer while pushing back tests the posterior drawer. In this case, the positive anterior drawer test indicated ACL damage.

Purpose: The purpose of this research study was to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and efficiency of the anterior draw test (AD), Lachman test, and the pivot shift test to detect laxity in the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Experimental Method: A total of twenty-eight male patients were selected for this study, and had to meet the following criteria. Each patient must have had ACL surgery, where three or more weeks had passed since the surgery, and the patellar tendon bone graph was used for each ACL surgery. Furthermore, each patient was examined for laxity in the ligament, and an MRI of the knee was taken too. Each of the patient’s knee was examined for ligament laxity in an outpatient setting, and under anesthesia. The sensitivity and specificity of each test would range from 2 to

When a patient is suffering with knee problems and/or pain, a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan may be ordered. An MRI is a diagnostic test that physicians frequently order to evaluate the knee. Following the procedure, MRI Specialists use the images obtained to investigate the source of potential knee problems and conditions.

A torn ACL is one of the most serious and common knee injuries. Many aspects play a role in the treatment and rehabilitation of this injury. This paper will discuss the anatomy of the knee, describe a torn ACL, and the rehabilitation.

ACL injuries used to be seen as career ending injuries 50 years ago, however, throughout the years with the advancement in technology aiding treatment and rehabilitation procedures. Yet they are still sever and take months to recover. This is because of the precise location of the ligament within the knee joint. Resulting in no blood clot formation within the joint as a consequence scar tissue will not form and the tissue will just be filled with uncontrolled blood leading to swelling an pain within the joint (ACL reconstruction Oxford university hospital, 2017) which is why it takes between 9 to 12 months for recovery. With an ACL injury, other injuries often follow, namely MCL injuries and meniscal lesions which in time would likely lead to the patient contracting osteoarthritis due to it being a degenerative disorder consequently resulting from the meniscal and