CSEP CEP LATEST EXAMS TEST PAPER QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS SURE A+
✔✔What is spondylolysis? - ✔✔Stress fracture in pars interarticularis of vertebral arch;
occurs mostly in lumbar
✔✔What is spondylolisthesis? - ✔✔Displacement of spinal vertebra, typically if fracture
in the pars interarticularis widens; may experience muscle spasms and difficulty walking
and standing
✔✔What is intra-abdominal pressure and why is it used? - ✔✔Created by bracing core
to create high amount of pressure through contractions; results in high BP
Can help stabilize and unload spine during lifting (flexion and standing tasks); can also
help reduce compressive forces on the spine
✔✔What are some key aspects of preventing spinal injuries? - ✔✔Education on proper
posture (prevent rounding of the back and neck), education on lifting technique (lifting
with legs vs back), exercise (strengthening of the core and back to maintain a strong
support system and protect vertebrae)
✔✔Rotator cuff tendinopathy - ✔✔Injury to rotator cuff tendons; pain and weakness,
experienced with external rotation and elevation, consequence of excessive load on
rotator cuff tissues
,✔✔Adhesive capsulitis - ✔✔Inflammatory condition causes fibrosis of GH joint capsule,
accompanied by progressive stiffness and significant ROM restriction; painful and
progressively restricted active and passive glenohumeral ROM
✔✔Acromial clavicular joint injury and separation - ✔✔Usually seen in contact sports;
pain often felt radiating to neck and deltoid, AC joint may become swollen, UE held in
adduction with acromion depressed, may cause clavicle to be elevated
✔✔Glenohumeral instability - ✔✔Inability to hold humeral head in glenoid fossa; may be
a result of traumatic or atraumatic (repetitive) forces; due to laxity in ligaments
✔✔Thoracic Outlet Syndrome - ✔✔Compression of neurovascular structures as they
exit through thoracic outlet
Pain anywhere between neck, face, occipital region, chest, shoulder, UE, paresthesia in
UE, altered or absent sensation, weakness, fatigue, feeling of heaviness in arm and
hand, skin may be blotchy or discolored
Signs and symptoms worse when arm is abducted overhead and externally rotated with
head rotated to same or opposite side (overhead throwing, painting a ceiling, driving, or
typing may exacerbate symptoms)
✔✔lateral epicondylitis - ✔✔Tennis elbow
Tendinopathy of extensor tendons due to overuse, common in repetitive one-sided
movements
Pain produced by palpation on extensor muscles origin on lateral epicondyle, can
radiate upwards along upper arm and downwards along outside of the forearm, often
seen that flexibility and strength in wrist extensor are deficient
✔✔Medial epicondylitis - ✔✔Golfer's elbow
Tendinopathy of flexor tendons due to overuse
Pain in elbow with radiation up/down arm, tenderness over medial epicondyle, stiffness
of elbow, weakness in hand and wrist, pain evoked by resisted flexion of wrist and
pronation, accompanied by weak grip
✔✔Radial and ulnar nerve entrapement - ✔✔Entrapment of the nerves due to repetitive
compression (leaning on elbow, throwing or overhead activities); tingling in fingers,
weak grip strength, pain and sensitivity, localized tenderness
✔✔Carpal tunnel syndrome - ✔✔Increased pressure and compression of the median
nerve in the carpal tunnel
Due to repetitive wrist motions; tingling or numbness in median nerve distribution of
affected hand, aggravation of symptoms with static gripping, at night or early in the
morning, burning pain, weakness and atrophy of muscles of the thenar eminence
, ✔✔De Quervain's Tenosynovitis - ✔✔Painful inflammation of tendons on side of the
wrist at base of thumb; gets worse with abduction of thumb, grasping action of hand and
ulnar deviation of wrist
✔✔Carpometacarpal joint arthritis - ✔✔Degenerative condition of hand that causes
pain, stiffness, weakness; decreased strength and ROM (may have difficulty opening
jars or doing up buttons)
✔✔SI joint injury - ✔✔May be a cause of low back pain; pain aggravated by getting out
of chair, prolonged standing/sitting, climbing stairs or morning stiffness
✔✔IT band syndrome - ✔✔Overuse injury resulting in inflammation of IT band
Repetitive activities involving knee flexion-extension cause pain, burning pain at lateral
femoral epicondyle, sharp pain on outer aspect of knee when heel strikes floor,
tenderness over knee
✔✔Patello-femoral pain syndrome - ✔✔Knee pain caused by misalignment of patella
due to variety of factors (overuse, muscular imbalance, anatomical abnormalities)
Pain aggravated by activities that increase patellofemoral compressive forces (stairs,
sitting with knees bent, kneeling, and squatting)
✔✔Meniscal injury - ✔✔Most common injury is a torn medial meniscus (greater
attachment area = stiffer, more common for knee to move medially vs laterally); caused
by a twisting motion; knee pain, swelling, knee locking, clicking feeling, tenderness
✔✔Cruciate ligament injury - ✔✔ACL (prevents anterior translation; most injuries occurs
through a cut and plant movement (sudden change in speed and direction); audible
pop/crack at time of injury, feeling of initial instability, episodes of giving way on pivoting
or twisting motions, swelling, restricted movement
PCL (prevents posterior translation; caused by direct blow to anterior tibia,
hyperextension/flexion or rotation; feeling of instability, may not present with symptoms
if an isolated injury
✔✔Collateral ligament injury - ✔✔MCL (due to a valgus force on the knee while foot is
fixed; causes pain swelling, may hear a popping noise, joint laxity and instability)
LCL (due to a varus force on knee or a lateral rotation; causes swelling, pain, lateral
joint line pain, pain with varus stress test, reduced ROM, difficulty weight bearing,
weakness of quadriceps, instability
✔✔Compartment syndrome - ✔✔Critical pressure increases within confined
compartment causing decline in perfusion pressure to tissue within compartment
AND ANSWERS SURE A+
✔✔What is spondylolysis? - ✔✔Stress fracture in pars interarticularis of vertebral arch;
occurs mostly in lumbar
✔✔What is spondylolisthesis? - ✔✔Displacement of spinal vertebra, typically if fracture
in the pars interarticularis widens; may experience muscle spasms and difficulty walking
and standing
✔✔What is intra-abdominal pressure and why is it used? - ✔✔Created by bracing core
to create high amount of pressure through contractions; results in high BP
Can help stabilize and unload spine during lifting (flexion and standing tasks); can also
help reduce compressive forces on the spine
✔✔What are some key aspects of preventing spinal injuries? - ✔✔Education on proper
posture (prevent rounding of the back and neck), education on lifting technique (lifting
with legs vs back), exercise (strengthening of the core and back to maintain a strong
support system and protect vertebrae)
✔✔Rotator cuff tendinopathy - ✔✔Injury to rotator cuff tendons; pain and weakness,
experienced with external rotation and elevation, consequence of excessive load on
rotator cuff tissues
,✔✔Adhesive capsulitis - ✔✔Inflammatory condition causes fibrosis of GH joint capsule,
accompanied by progressive stiffness and significant ROM restriction; painful and
progressively restricted active and passive glenohumeral ROM
✔✔Acromial clavicular joint injury and separation - ✔✔Usually seen in contact sports;
pain often felt radiating to neck and deltoid, AC joint may become swollen, UE held in
adduction with acromion depressed, may cause clavicle to be elevated
✔✔Glenohumeral instability - ✔✔Inability to hold humeral head in glenoid fossa; may be
a result of traumatic or atraumatic (repetitive) forces; due to laxity in ligaments
✔✔Thoracic Outlet Syndrome - ✔✔Compression of neurovascular structures as they
exit through thoracic outlet
Pain anywhere between neck, face, occipital region, chest, shoulder, UE, paresthesia in
UE, altered or absent sensation, weakness, fatigue, feeling of heaviness in arm and
hand, skin may be blotchy or discolored
Signs and symptoms worse when arm is abducted overhead and externally rotated with
head rotated to same or opposite side (overhead throwing, painting a ceiling, driving, or
typing may exacerbate symptoms)
✔✔lateral epicondylitis - ✔✔Tennis elbow
Tendinopathy of extensor tendons due to overuse, common in repetitive one-sided
movements
Pain produced by palpation on extensor muscles origin on lateral epicondyle, can
radiate upwards along upper arm and downwards along outside of the forearm, often
seen that flexibility and strength in wrist extensor are deficient
✔✔Medial epicondylitis - ✔✔Golfer's elbow
Tendinopathy of flexor tendons due to overuse
Pain in elbow with radiation up/down arm, tenderness over medial epicondyle, stiffness
of elbow, weakness in hand and wrist, pain evoked by resisted flexion of wrist and
pronation, accompanied by weak grip
✔✔Radial and ulnar nerve entrapement - ✔✔Entrapment of the nerves due to repetitive
compression (leaning on elbow, throwing or overhead activities); tingling in fingers,
weak grip strength, pain and sensitivity, localized tenderness
✔✔Carpal tunnel syndrome - ✔✔Increased pressure and compression of the median
nerve in the carpal tunnel
Due to repetitive wrist motions; tingling or numbness in median nerve distribution of
affected hand, aggravation of symptoms with static gripping, at night or early in the
morning, burning pain, weakness and atrophy of muscles of the thenar eminence
, ✔✔De Quervain's Tenosynovitis - ✔✔Painful inflammation of tendons on side of the
wrist at base of thumb; gets worse with abduction of thumb, grasping action of hand and
ulnar deviation of wrist
✔✔Carpometacarpal joint arthritis - ✔✔Degenerative condition of hand that causes
pain, stiffness, weakness; decreased strength and ROM (may have difficulty opening
jars or doing up buttons)
✔✔SI joint injury - ✔✔May be a cause of low back pain; pain aggravated by getting out
of chair, prolonged standing/sitting, climbing stairs or morning stiffness
✔✔IT band syndrome - ✔✔Overuse injury resulting in inflammation of IT band
Repetitive activities involving knee flexion-extension cause pain, burning pain at lateral
femoral epicondyle, sharp pain on outer aspect of knee when heel strikes floor,
tenderness over knee
✔✔Patello-femoral pain syndrome - ✔✔Knee pain caused by misalignment of patella
due to variety of factors (overuse, muscular imbalance, anatomical abnormalities)
Pain aggravated by activities that increase patellofemoral compressive forces (stairs,
sitting with knees bent, kneeling, and squatting)
✔✔Meniscal injury - ✔✔Most common injury is a torn medial meniscus (greater
attachment area = stiffer, more common for knee to move medially vs laterally); caused
by a twisting motion; knee pain, swelling, knee locking, clicking feeling, tenderness
✔✔Cruciate ligament injury - ✔✔ACL (prevents anterior translation; most injuries occurs
through a cut and plant movement (sudden change in speed and direction); audible
pop/crack at time of injury, feeling of initial instability, episodes of giving way on pivoting
or twisting motions, swelling, restricted movement
PCL (prevents posterior translation; caused by direct blow to anterior tibia,
hyperextension/flexion or rotation; feeling of instability, may not present with symptoms
if an isolated injury
✔✔Collateral ligament injury - ✔✔MCL (due to a valgus force on the knee while foot is
fixed; causes pain swelling, may hear a popping noise, joint laxity and instability)
LCL (due to a varus force on knee or a lateral rotation; causes swelling, pain, lateral
joint line pain, pain with varus stress test, reduced ROM, difficulty weight bearing,
weakness of quadriceps, instability
✔✔Compartment syndrome - ✔✔Critical pressure increases within confined
compartment causing decline in perfusion pressure to tissue within compartment
