Brain Damage Flashcards
(31 cards)
What are meningiomas?
- brain tumor encased in meninges
- encapsulated, growing within their own membranes
- usually benign & surgically removable
What are strokes?
-sudden onset cerebrovascular event that causes brain damage
What is a cerebral hemorrhage?
bleeding in the brain
What is a cerebral ischemia?
disruption of blood supply
What causes cerebral hemorrhages?
-aneurysms (weakened point in a blood vessel that makes stroke more likely)
What causes cerebral ischemia?
- thrombosis (plug forms in brain)
- embolism (plug forms elsewhere and moves to the brain)
- arteriosclerosis (wall of blood vessels thicken, usually due to fat deposits)
What is a contusion?
- closed head injuries
- damage to the cerebral circulatory system
- hematoma (bruise) forms
What is a concussion?
- disturbance of consciousness following a blow to the head
- no evidence of structural damage
What is punch-drunk syndrome?
dementia resulting from multiple concussions
What is encephalitis?
inflammation of the brain by an invasion of microorganisms
What is down syndrome and its characteristics?
- extra 21st chromosome created during ovulation
- characteristic disfigurement
- mental retardation
- other health problems
What is an epileptic focus?
- seizures often preceded by an aura such as a smell, hallucination or feeling
- warns epileptic of an impending seizure
What are the two types of partial seizures?
Simple & Complex
What is a simple partial seizure?
- symptoms are primarily sensory or motor or both
- symptoms spread as epileptic discharge spreads
What is a complex partial seizure?
- often restricted to the temporal lobes
- patient engages in compulsive and repetitive simple behaviors (automatisms)
What are the two types of generalized seizures?
Grand mal & petit mal
What is a grand mal seizure?
- loss of consciousness and equilibrium
- tonic-clonic convulsions
- rigidity & tremors
What is a petit mal seizure?
- not associated with convulsions
- a disruption of consciousness associated with a cessation of ongoing behavior
What is Parkinson’s disease?
- movement disorder
- tremor at rest is most common symptom
- dementia typically not seen
What area of the brain shows degeneration in Parkinson’s disease?
-degeneration of the substantia nigra
What is Huntington’s disease?
- begins with increased fidgetiness
- progresses to rapid, complex jerky movements of entire limbs
- motor and intellectual deterioration becomes progressively severe
What causes Huntington’s disease?
Single mutated dominant gene that normally produces the protein huntingtin
What is multiple sclerosis and what are its symptoms?
- progressive disease that attacks the CNS mylein leaving areas of hard scar tissue
- symptoms include visual disturbances, muscle weakness, numbness, tremor and loss of motor coordination
What is Alzheimer’s disease?
- most common cause of dementia
- progressive, early stages characterized by confusion and selective decline in memory
