Adult Bone Dynamics and Remodeling Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering the key mechanisms, cell types, adaptation principles, fracture repair stages, and hormonal controls of adult bones based on lecture notes.

Bone Remodeling

The continuous balance in adult bones between bone resorption by osteoclasts and new bone formation by osteoblasts.

Wolff's Law

The principle stating that adult bones adapt to the physical stresses and mechanical loading placed on them.

Osteocytes

Cells that detect mechanical strain in bone and signal osteoblasts to deposit more bone mineral at the site of highest stress.

Disuse Osteoporosis

A significant decrease in bone mass and density that occurs when mechanical loading is removed, causing osteoclasts to outpace osteoblasts.

Bone Remodeling (Injury Repair)

The final stage of fracture repair where excess bone is shaved down by osteoclasts and compact bone is laid down to reconstruct original bone structure over many months or years.

Estrogen and Testosterone

Sex hormones that maintain adult bone density by inhibiting the bone-breaking activity of osteoclasts.

Growth Hormone (GH) and IGF-1

Hormones that stimulate osteoblasts to form new bone and promote bone thickness and mass after growth plates fuse in adolescence.