Dictionary

fracture, buckle See fracture, torus.

fracture, clay-shoveler’s An uncommon breakage of the spine, of the vertebrae from the lower neck or upper back, that results from stress. Clayshoveler’s fracture usually occurs in laborers who rapidly lift heavy weights with their arms extended, such as in shoveling. Symptoms of clay-shoveler’s fracture include burning, knife-like pain at the level of the fractured…

fracture, comminuted A fracture in which a bone is broken, splintered, or crushed into a number of pieces.

fracture, compound A fracture in which a bone is sticking through the skin. Also known as an open fracture.

fracture, compression A fracture caused by compression, the act of pressing together. Compression fractures of the vertebrae are especially common in elderly people.

fracture, greenstick A fracture in which one side of a bone is broken and the other is bent (like a green stick).

foot, athlete’s See athlete’s foot.

foot drop brace See ankle-foot orthosis.

foot fungus See athlete’s foot.

footling birth A foot- or feet-first birth. A footling birth is called single-footling or doublefootling, depending on whether the presenting part of the baby at delivery is just one foot or both feet. Also known as footling presentation.

footling presentation See footling birth.

foramen A natural opening. Although a foramen is usually through bone, it can be an opening through other types of tissue, as with the foramen ovale in the heart. The plural of foramen is foramina.