| muscle relaxants, central | A heterogeneous group of drugs used to produce muscle relaxation, excepting the neuromuscular blocking agents. They have their primary clinical and therapeutic uses in the treatment of muscle spasm and immobility associated with strains, sprains, and injuries of the back and, to a lesser degree, injuries to the neck. They have been used also for the treatment of a variety of clinical conditions that have in common only the presence of skeletal muscle hyperactivity, for example, the muscle spasms that can occur in multiple sclerosis. (12 Dec 1998) |
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| muscle relaxation | That phase of a muscle twitch during which a muscle returns to a resting position. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle repositioning | The surgical replacement of a muscle attachment into a more functional position. (05 Mar 2000) |
| muscle resection | Shortening of the tendon of the ocular muscle in strabismus. (05 Mar 2000) |
| muscle rigidity | Continuous tonic contraction of skeletal muscle. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle serum | The fluid remaining after the coagulation of muscle plasma and the separation of myosin. (05 Mar 2000) |
| muscle, skeletal | Striated muscles having fibres connected at either or both extremities with the bony framework of the body. These are found in appendicular and axial muscles. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle, smooth | Unstriated and unstriped muscle, one of the muscles of the internal organs, blood vessels, hair follicles, etc. Contractile elements are elongated, usually spindle-shaped cells with centrally located nuclei. Smooth muscle fibres are bound together into sheets or bundles by reticular fibres and frequently elastic nets are also abundant. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle, smooth, vascular | The nonstriated, involuntary muscle tissue of blood vessels. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle sound | A fine murmur heard on auscultation over the belly of a contracting muscle. (05 Mar 2000) |
| muscle spasm | <physiology> Painful involuntary muscle contractions. Often seen in skeletal muscle after acute injury (muscle strain). (07 Apr 1998) |
| muscle spasticity | A combination of the symptoms of increased resistance to lengthening, hyperactive tendon reflexes, and clonus. Muscle spasticity occurs in hemiplegia. (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle spindle | A specialised muscle fibre found in tetrapod vertebrates. A bundle of muscle fibres is innervated by sensory neurons. Stretching the muscle causes the neurons to fire, the muscle spindle thus functions as a stretch receptor. (18 Nov 1997) |
| muscle spindles | Mechanoreceptors found between skeletal muscle fibres. Muscle spindles are arranged in parallel with muscle fibres and respond to the passive stretch of the muscle, but cease to discharge if the muscle contracts isotonically, thus signaling muscle length. The muscle spindles are the receptors responsible for the stretch or myotactic reflex (reflex, stretch). (12 Dec 1998) |
| muscle strain | An acute tearing injury to muscle. Usually associated with a small amount of bleeding (haematoma) into the injured muscle tissue. (27 Sep 1997) |