Ch 21 Key Terms

Question 1

antegrade amnesia

Answer 1

loss of memory of events that occurred after a traumatic event to the brain; an inability to recall new information.

Question 2

axon

Answer 2

long, slender projection of a nerve cell (neuron) that conducts electrical impulses away from the neuron’s cell body.

Question 3

brain stem

Answer 3

the lower part of the brain, adjoining and structurally continuous with the spinal cord.

Question 4

central nervous system (CNS)

Answer 4

the part of the nervous system that includes the brain and spinal cord.

Question 5

cerebellum

Answer 5

posterior part of the brain that plays an important role in the integration of sensory perception and motor control, especially for coordination.

Question 6

cerebrospinal fluid

Answer 6

serum-like fluid that functions in shock absorption for central nervous system structures; circulates through passages within the brain and within the meninges surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

Question 7

cerebrum

Answer 7

region on the top of the brain that integrates sensory perception and motor control and is involved in attention and the processing of language, music, and other sensory stimuli.

Question 8

diffuse axonal injury

Answer 8

the most common and devastating types of traumatic brain injury; results when damage occurs over a more widespread area than in focal brain injury.

Question 9

epidural hematoma

Answer 9

a traumatic brain injury in which a buildup of blood occurs between the dura mater and the skull.

Question 10

intracranial pressure

Answer 10

the pressure within the skull; can also be exerted on the brain tissue and cerebrospinal fluid.

Question 11

lucid period

Answer 11

a short period during which the condition of a patient with a traumatic brain injury temporarily improves before again deteriorating.

Question 12

neural ischemia

Answer 12

a condition in which part of the brain or spinal cord receives too little oxygenated blood; damage to these organs results after only a few minutes of anoxia.

Question 13

neuron

Answer 13

nerve cell.

Question 14

peripheral nervous system

Answer 14

the part of the nervous system outside the central nervous system.

Question 15

recurrent traumatic brain injury

Answer 15

a condition in which the head suffers multiple, successive injuries before a previous injury has fully healed; subsequent injuries can be much more severe due to the occurrence of previous injuries.

Question 16

retrograde amnesia

Answer 16

loss of memory of events that occurred before a traumatic event to the brain; an inability to recall old information.

Question 17

spinal cord

Answer 17

tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain downward to the sacrum within the vertebral canal; part of the central nervous system.

Question 18

subdural hematoma

Answer 18

an accumulation of blood between the outer covering of the brain (dura mater) and the surface of the brain.

Question 19

traumatic brain injury

Answer 19

physical trauma to the brain; can be localized or diffuse.