Rotation

Short definition of Rotation (in the context of a term to describe movement of the body):

Rotation is movement in which something, e.g. a bone or a whole limb, pivots or revolves around a single long axis.

It is useful to know other words related to "rotation", including:

• rotator - a muscle that can act to cause anrotationmovement at a joint is called an rotator. For example, the abductor pollicis longus muscle.
• to rotate (verb) - e.g. "he rotated his head slowly from left to right".

 

Examples of Rotation:

1. Rotation of the Cervical Spine (Neck):
   Rotation of the neck can be demonstrated by moving one's head to the right and left evenly, so without tilting the head up or down at the same time, while keeping the shoulder girdle still (there are several physiotherapy demonstrations / video-clips of this on YouTube). A normal human adult has approx. 80^o (80 degrees) neck rotation to each - right and left - side.
   
   
2. Rotation of the Shoulder:
   The shoulder joint allows for several different types of movement and combinations of movements, including abduction, flexion, extension and rotations.
   Rotations at the shoulder joint include:
• internal rotation at 90^o abduction (typically up to 70^o),
• external rotation at 90^o abduction (typically up to 100^o) and
• internal rotation in extension.
  
  
3. Rotation of the Hip:
   The hip joint allows for several different types of movement and combinations of movements, including abduction, adduction, flexion, extension and rotations.
   Rotations at the hip joint include:
   • internal rotation at 90^o flexion (typically up to 45^o),
   • external rotation at 90^o flexion (typically up to 45^o),
   • internal rotation in extension (typically up to 35^o), and
   • external rotation in extension (typically up to 45^o).