Veterinary & Forensic Trauma Analysis – Modules 1 – 8

Vocabulary flashcards summarizing essential terms and definitions from Modules 1–8 of the Veterinary & Forensic Trauma Analysis course, covering trauma categories, biomechanics, fracture types, healing, pathology, taphonomy, and specific trauma mechanisms.

Trauma Analysis

Application of biomechanics to determine the mechanism and timing of bone injuries.

Trauma

Any external force or event (physical or psychological) that disrupts homeostasis; in skeletal work, the evidence left by such events.

Antemortem Trauma

Injury sustained before death, recognized by signs of healing.

Perimortem Trauma

Injury occurring at or around the time of death, showing ‘green bone’ characteristics like plastic deformation.

Postmortem Damage

Alteration to bone after death; not true trauma, identified through taphonomic patterns.

Blunt Force Trauma (BFT)

Injury from slow-loading forces over a broad surface (e.g., bat, wall, car strike).

Sharp Force Trauma (SFT)

Injury from forces applied over a small surface with a sharp edge or point (e.g., knife, saw).

High-Velocity Projectile Trauma (HVPT)

Injury from rapid force over a small area, typical of firearms or compound-bow arrows.

Thermal Alteration

Bone changes caused by exposure to heat or fire.

Plastic Deformation

Permanent bending of living bone under slow-loading force before fracturing.

Compression Force

Load that decreases bone dimensions.

Tension Force

Load that increases bone dimensions.

Bending Force

Combination of compression on one side and tension on the opposite side of bone.

Shear Force

Load that causes sliding of bone portions relative to each other.

Torsion Force

Shear combined with rotation, producing spiral fractures.

Yield Point

Stress level at which bone transitions from elastic to plastic deformation.

Failure Point

Stress level at which bone fractures.

Creep Fracture

Break produced by low static loads applied over a long period.

Fatigue (Stress) Fracture

Break from repeated loading below normal failure levels, causing micro-cracks that coalesce.

Stiffness

Material’s resistance to deformation under load.

Strength

Load value at which a bone fails.

Toughness

Energy required to cause fracture; bone’s capacity to absorb energy.

Incomplete Fracture

Break where some cortical continuity remains (e.g., greenstick, bow).

Complete Fracture

Break with full discontinuity between fragments (e.g., transverse, spiral).

Bow Fracture

Exaggerated curvature without full break, common in juveniles.

Torus (Buckle) Fracture

Buckling of cortex producing a rounded bulge from compressive force.

Greenstick Fracture

Transverse crack that deviates longitudinally along the bone, typical of bending in juveniles.

Depressed Fracture

Caving-in of bone, classically in skull from compressive blows.

Transverse Fracture

Break at approx. right angle to shaft, often from direct bending or shear.

Oblique Fracture

Diagonal break across shaft due to angulation with compression.

Spiral Fracture

Fracture encircling shaft, indicative of torsional force.

Comminuted Fracture

Break producing two or more major fragments; butterfly subtype yields wedge fragment.

Epiphyseal Fracture

Break involving growth plate, risking growth disturbances.

Pseudotrauma

Normal variants (e.g., foramina) or pathology mimicking injuries.

Reactive Phase (Healing)

Early inflammatory stage with bleeding, WBC influx, and osteoclastic cleanup (days 1-7).

Reparative Phase

Stage of callus formation with woven (fibrous) bone bridging the fracture (weeks–months).

Remodeling Phase

Replacement of woven callus by mature lamellar bone over months to years.

Callus

Proliferative bone mass that stabilizes a fracture during reparative phase.

Pseudoarthrosis

False joint forming when unstable fracture fails to unite, showing rounded ends and wear.

Myositis Ossificans

Ectopic bone formation within muscle following trauma or inflammation.

Osteonecrosis

Bone death from disrupted blood supply; avascular necrosis causes collapse of articular surfaces.

Periostitis

Inflammation of periosteum producing new bone on outer cortex.

Osteitis

Inflammation spreading from periosteum into cortical bone.

Osteomyelitis

Infection of marrow cavity, causing cloacae and sequestra.

Sequestrum

Isolated piece of dead bone within an area of osteomyelitis.

Cloaca

Drainage channel in infected bone allowing pus to escape.

Cribria Orbitalia

Porous hypertrophy in eye orbits linked to chronic anemia.

Porotic Hyperostosis

Porous cranial vault thickening from marrow expansion in anemia.

Harris Lines

Growth-arrest lines visible radiographically in long bones of starved juveniles.

Linear Enamel Hypoplasia

Transverse defects in tooth enamel from developmental stress (e.g., starvation).

Bone Marrow Fat Analysis

Quantification of residual marrow fat to assess severe starvation (<20 % indicates end-stage).

Osteoarthritis

Degenerative joint disease marked by osteophytes, eburnation, and lipping.

Osteophyte

Bony projection forming at joint margins in osteoarthritis.

Eburnation

Polished, ivory-like joint surface from cartilage loss and bone-on-bone contact.

Osteoporosis

Reduced bone density and cortical thinning, predisposing to fractures.

Vitamin D Deficiency (Rickets)

Poor bone mineralization causing ‘soft’ bowed long bones.

Osteogenesis Imperfecta

Genetic collagen disorder producing brittle bones and frequent fractures.

Pathology (forensic)

Study of disease processes reflected as skeletal lesions—proliferative, lytic, or deformative.

Taphonomy

Study of postmortem processes affecting a body: decomposition, dispersal, erosion, burial, modification.

Environmental Factors (Taphonomy)

External variables like climate, water, burial conditions influencing decomposition.

Individual Factors (Taphonomy)

Subject traits (age, health, trauma) that alter decomposition pattern.

Cultural Factors (Taphonomy)

Human activities (burial, embalming, dismemberment) impacting remains.

Adipocere

Waxy fat conversion in moist, cool settings—‘grave wax’.

Mummification

Desiccation preserving skin and soft tissue in dry environments.

Delamination

Layered flaking of bone cortex from prolonged sun/heat exposure.

Root Etching

Acidic plant root tracks engraving bone surfaces post-burial.

Diastatic Fracture

Fracture that propagates along cranial sutures, separating them.

Buttressing

Thickened bone pillars that resist fracture propagation (e.g., canine frontal crest).

Pattern Injury

Bone damage retaining the outline of the impacting object (e.g., hammer claw marks).

Hangman’s Fracture

Bilateral fracture of C2 pedicles from hyperextension/hanging.

Butterfly Fracture

Wedge-shaped fragment produced by bending and axial compression of long bones (e.g., car strikes).

Kerf Mark

Cut surface left by a saw blade.

Kerf Floor

Bottom surface of a saw cut; its shape (W, square, U) indicates tooth type.

Kerf Wall

Side surface of a saw cut bearing parallel striations from teeth.

Break-Away Spur

Remaining bone tab opposite the saw’s final stroke, showing cut direction.

Exit Chipping

Flaked bone around kerf where saw teeth exit, indicating stroke direction.

Keyhole Defect

HVPT lesion with combined entrance and exit beveling caused by steep-angle impact.

Beveling

Conical expansion of gunshot wound, internal at entry, external at exit.

Penetrating Wound

Projectile enters but does not exit the body.

Perforating Wound

Projectile passes completely through, leaving entrance and exit.

Trajectory

Bullet’s path through the body, inferred from entrance/exit orientation.

Intermediate Target

Object struck before bone that alters bullet shape or path (e.g., glass, clothing).

Shotgun ‘Spread’

Distance-dependent dispersion of pellets producing characteristic injury patterns.

Lead Wipe

Radiopaque trace of lead particles along bullet path on X-ray.

False Start Kerf

Shallow initial saw groove where cutting began then stopped.

Chatter Marks

Series of small skip scratches from an unsteady or powered saw blade.

Pseudoarthrosis

False joint forming where fracture fails to unite, showing rounded ends and motion wear.

Neglect (forensic)

Failure to provide adequate treatment, inferred from poorly managed or infected healed injuries.

Abuse (forensic)

Intentional harm evidenced by multiple injuries in varying healing stages.

Sequence of Blows

Order of impacts determined by fracture terminations at earlier lines.

Maceration

Laboratory process of removing soft tissue from remains for skeletal analysis.

Callus Remodeling

Replacement of initial woven bone by lamellar bone restoring shape and strength.

Diastasis

Separation or widening of a suture from traumatic force.