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guarding

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Legal, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
guarding
n.
A spasm of muscles that minimizes the motion or agitation of sites that are affected by injury or disease.

guarding.
guarding (gärˑ·ding),
n 1. phenomenon in which muscles react to an injury to a joint, bone or ligament by contracting in order to form a protective splint.
2. a sign detected during physical pain whereby the patient involuntarily contracts muscles second to pain.

guarding
Physical exam Involuntary muscle spasm elicited by fulminant acute peritonitis, leaving the anterior abdominal muscles in a state of tonic contraction, imparting a board-like consistency to the rectus abdominis muscles, distinguished from voluntary guarding, seen in 'ticklish' Pts. See Abdominal guarding.


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