Mystery solved: Why knuckles crack
※ Download: Why do your knuckles crack
When the bubble pops, it creates a loud noise. This study, done by Raymond Brodeur and published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, examined 300 knuckle crackers for evidence of joint damage.
Is Cracking Your Knuckles Associated with Arthritis? If you want to use an article on your site please. According to traditional belief, the popping of joints, especially knuckles, can lead to and other joint problems.
What makes your knuckles pop? - Knuckle cracking should be performed gently, and never forced.
The hand before knuckle-cracking left and after right. What is it that makes that popping sound when you crack your knuckles? If you think it's vacuum cavities forming in the synovial fluid of the joint, give yourself a gold star: a team of researchers led by the University of Alberta Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine have confirmed that that is precisely what it is. By pulling the fingers of a test subject inside an MRI machine. In 1971, however, that proposed that it was not the formation, but the collapse of the bubble that produced the audible effect -- in other words, that it was the bursting of the bubble that made a noise. Other hypothetical sources of the knuckle-cracking noise included stretching ligaments, or the in the joints snapping -- but the bubble idea has always been the strongest, since X-rays taken directly after cracking a joint show a gas bubble inside that joint. But whether or not it was the formation or collapse of the bubble had still been something of a mystery. The idea for the study came from Nanaimo chiropractor Jerome Fryer, who approached Professor Kawchuk with a theory. Rather than beat around the bush, they decided to take a direct look using magnetic resonance imaging -- with as the guinea pig. Fryer's fingers were inserted, one at a time, into a tube attached to a cable; this tube slowly pulled on each finger until the knuckle cracked. And, in each instance, it was absolutely the formation of the bubble in the synovial fluid that was associated with the popping sound, occurring within 310 milliseconds. Fryer's hand attached to the knuckle-cracking machine. University of Alberta, Kawchuk et al. The team believes studying joint cracking could help them better understand joint health -- such as the contradiction between the amount of force required to crack a joint enough to cause damage to hard surfaces and the fact that it doesn't appear to do long-term harm. One thing they found, for instance, was a flash of white in the MRI just before the joint popped -- something no one had ever documented before. Professor Kawchuk believes it was water suddenly being drawn into the joint, and plans to use more advanced MRI to study what happens in the joint just before and after the pop. The 1971 team may have missed the mark on the cause of the sound, but they did get at least one thing correct.
The information on this website is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional and is not intended as medical advice. If you are feeling pain when your joints pop, then you should seek a health care professional. Habitual Knuckle Cracking Might Impair Your Hand Function While cracking your knuckles might not lead to arthritis, it does appear to have other consequences. Cracking the joint releases the pressure that has built up, however, which can make the fingers feel looser and more mobile. Gliding joints in the spine and wrists are flexible, giving those areas of the body wide ranges of motion. There is some evidence that may be associated with an increased tendency to cavitate. Over 15 years later, I'm not where I wanted to be. Spurs grow out from the edge of the bone, and synovial fluid increases. In case you wondered: my general health is excellent, I have never broken a bone in my life and no one in my family has arthritis, neither do I.
