Textbook Question
Compare bone to cartilage tissue relative to its resilience, speed of regeneration, and access to nutrients.
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Ch. 6 Bones and Skeletal Tissues
Marieb, Hoehn7th EditionHuman Anatomy & PhysiologyISBN: 9780805359091
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Table of contents
- Ch. 1 The Human Body: An Orientation24
- Ch. 2 Chemistry Comes Alive25
- Ch. 3 Cells: The Living Units24
- Ch. 4 Tissue: The Living Fabric19
- Ch. 5 The Integumentary System10
- Ch. 6 Bones and Skeletal Tissues19
- Ch. 7 The Skeleton11
- Ch. 8 Joints7
- Ch. 9 Muscles and Muscle Tissue26
- Ch. 10 The Muscular System26
- Ch. 11 Fundamentals of the Nervous System and Nervous Tissue23
- Ch. 12 The Central Nervous System26
- Ch. 13 The Peripheral Nervous System and Reflex Activity28
- Ch. 14 The Autonomic Nervous System18
- Ch. 16 The Endocrine System26
- Ch. 17 Blood27
- Ch. 18 The Cardiovascular System: The Heart22
- Ch. 19 The Cardiovascular System: Blood Vessels27
- Ch. 20 The Lymphatic System and Lymphoid Organs and Tissues16
- Ch. 21 The Immune System: Innate and Adaptive Body Defenses29
- Ch. 22 The Respiratory System20
- Ch. 23 The Digestive System30
- Ch. 24 Nutrition, Metabolism, and Energy Balance26
- Ch. 25 The Urinary System25
- Ch. 26 Fluid, Electrolyte, and Acid-Base Balance24
- Ch. 27 The Reproductive System23
Marieb, Hoehn7th EditionHuman Anatomy & PhysiologyISBN: 9780805359091Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 6, Problem 15
a. Why are fractures most common in elderly individuals?
b. Why are greenstick fractures most common in children?
Verified step by step guidance1
Step 1: Understand the structural changes in bones with aging. In elderly individuals, bones undergo a decrease in bone density and mineral content, a condition known as osteoporosis, which makes bones more brittle and prone to fractures.
Step 2: Recognize that elderly bones have reduced collagen and calcium, leading to decreased bone strength and elasticity, which increases the likelihood of fractures even with minor trauma.
Step 3: For children, understand that their bones are still developing and contain more organic matrix (collagen) and less mineralization, making them more flexible and less brittle compared to adult bones.
Step 4: Learn that greenstick fractures occur in children because their bones are softer and more pliable, so instead of breaking completely, the bone bends and cracks partially, similar to how a green twig breaks.
Step 5: Summarize that fractures are more common in elderly due to bone brittleness from decreased density, while greenstick fractures are common in children due to the flexibility and incomplete ossification of their bones.
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Key Concepts
Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.
Bone Density and Aging
As people age, bone density decreases due to reduced calcium absorption and hormonal changes, leading to osteoporosis. This makes bones more brittle and prone to fractures, especially in elderly individuals.
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Bone Flexibility in Children
Children's bones contain more collagen and have a higher water content, making them more flexible and less brittle. This flexibility allows bones to bend rather than break completely, resulting in greenstick fractures.
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Types of Fractures
Fractures vary based on bone properties and force applied. In elderly, brittle bones often cause complete breaks, while in children, flexible bones lead to partial breaks like greenstick fractures, where the bone bends and cracks without breaking fully.
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Related Practice
Textbook Question
Describe the process of new bone formation in an adult bone. Use the terms "osteoid seam" and "calcification front" in your discussion.
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Textbook Question
Osteocytes residing in lacunae of osteons of healthy compact bone are located quite a distance from the blood vessels in the central canals, yet they are well nourished. How can this be explained?
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Textbook Question
Why do you think wheelchair-bound people with paralyzed lower limbs have thin, weak bones of the leg and thigh?
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Textbook Question
Yolanda is asked to review a bone slide that her professor has set up under the microscope. She sees concentric layers surrounding a central cavity. Is this bone section taken from the diaphysis or the epiphyseal plate of the specimen?
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Textbook Question
As we grow, our long bones increase in diameter, but the thickness of the compact bone of the shaft remains relatively constant. Explain this phenomenon.
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