Golfers Never Bitch (or the Rodney Dangerfield of Bones)

​The scapula is truly the Rodney Dangerfield of bones: It gets no respect. Every chest x-ray we see gives us two chances to embed in our minds what normal looks like. Few avail themselves of this opportunity. In fact, most do not have any systematic process to look at this bone at all. That will change today!​A 59-year-old man fell down some steps, landing on his left shoulder and upper back. He presented with pain in that area and difficulty lifting his left arm.The wrist has a well-known mnemonic—Some Lovers Try Positions That They Can't Handle—to remember the order of the carpal bones. I'm proposing a brand-new mnemonic for the scapula—Golfers Never Bitch Swinging A Club—to remember a methodical approach to assessing the scapula. Starting at the shoulder joint, one circles the bone to scrutinize each part.Golfers         GlenoidNever           NeckBitch            BodySwinging      SpineA                 AcromionClub             CoracoidThe first problem in this patient's case is seen coming down from the glenoid to the neck: a small chip fragment and an angle in the normally smoothly-arched neck into the body (purple arrow). Something is definitely...
Source: Lions and Tigers and Bears - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Blog Posts Source Type: blogs