Neuro Exam - Lecture

Question 1

What abnormalities can be seen in the stance of an animal?

Answer 1

Wide based, knuckling, rigid/flaccid limbs, and weight shifting

Question 2

What should you be looking for when you examine a posture of an animal?

Answer 2

Standing normally. Any head tilts. Whether or not patient seems to be guarding or not. Whether patient is willingly moving around the room or not.

Question 3

What is ataxia?

Answer 3

Lack of coordination without spasticity, paresis or involuntary movement

Question 4

What are the three possible types of ataxia?

Answer 4

Cerebellar, vestibular, and proprioception

Question 5

What is dysmetria?

Answer 5

Movement that is too long or too short

Question 6

What is it called when a movement is too long?

Answer 6

Hypermetria

Question 7

What is it called when a movement is too short?

Answer 7

Hypometria

Question 8

Where is a dysfunction that causes dysmetria?

Answer 8

Cerebellar

Question 9

Where is a dysfunction possibly if there is circling behavior?

Answer 9

Vestibular, caudal brainstem

Question 10

What is tightrope walking?

Answer 10

Do not know where legs are so will cross over the midline

Question 11

What are the six postural reactions?

Answer 11

Proprioception, wheelbarrowing, hopping, hemi-standing/walking, placing, and extensor postural thrust

Question 12

How do you test for proprioception?

Answer 12

Flex foot so that dorsal surface lightly touches the floor.

Question 13

What is another alternative way to test for proprioception?

Answer 13

Stand the foot on a piece of paper and slide the foot/paper laterally.

Question 14

What does wheelbarrowing assess for?

Answer 14

Weakness of thoracic limbs as well as proprioception

Question 15

How is wheelbarrowing done?

Answer 15

Elevate pelvic limbs and allow the patient to move forward while supporting some of the body to prevent falling.

Question 16

How is the hopping test carried out?

Answer 16

Holding patient so majority of weight is on one limb while the animal is moved laterally.

Question 17

What is the hopping test used to detect?

Answer 17

Subtle ataxia or weakness of one limb. Seen by dog losing balance or falling on one side.

Question 18

How is the technique of hemistanding carried out?

Answer 18

Thoracic and pelvic limbs on one side are elevated, so that all of patients weight is on opposite limb. Animal is then walked forward and in a lateral manner.

Question 19

What is a normal response with hemistanding?

Answer 19

Patient is able to correct it’s position and bear weight as it is forced forward or to one side.

Question 20

What is the hemistanding test looking for?

Answer 20

Animals with forebrain lesions may show deficits in contralateral limbs to side of brain lesion

Question 21

What is the normal response in a wheelbarrow test?

Answer 21

patient will be able to walk forward or sideways with coordinated movement of both thoracic limbs.

Question 22

What is a normal response with the hopping test?

Answer 22

patient accommodates to new body position as their center of gravity is displaced

Question 23

What is a normal response with the proprioception test that involves sliding the foot on a piece of paper?

Answer 23

patient correcting stance because they will feel like they are falling.

Question 24

What is a normal response to a proprioception test?

Answer 24

patient correcting foot position.

Question 25

What three systems does doing placing tests look at?

Answer 25

Motor, sensory, and visual

Question 26

What are the two types of placing?

Answer 26

Tactile and visual

Question 27

How is tactile placing tested?

Answer 27

Covering the patients eyes and moving towardd the edge of a table.

Question 28

What is a normal response in a tactile placing test?

Answer 28

Place paws on the table as soon as they contact the edge

Question 29

How is visual placing tested?

Answer 29

Same way as you would test tactile but patient is allowed to see the table.

Question 30

If there is a forebrain lesion what side will be affected in a placement test?

Answer 30

Contralateral

Question 31

If an area caudal to the midbrain is affected what side will be abnormal in a placement test?

Answer 31

Ipsilateral

Question 32

How is a extensor postural thrust done?

Answer 32

Animal is supported by the thorax and pelvic limbs are lowered to the floor.

Question 33

What is the normal response to the extensor postural thrust?

Answer 33

When animals foot makes contact with the floor the animal should move caudally in a symmetric walking movement to achieve a position of support

Question 34

What does the extensor postural thrust asssess?

Answer 34

Vestibular reaction, isolates rear limb weakness, and coordination/symmetry of movement

Question 35

What are the three reflexes in the pelvic limb?

Answer 35

Quadriceps, cranial tibial, and gastrocnemius

Question 36

What are the three reflexes in the thoracic limb?

Answer 36

Extensor carpi radialis, triceps, and biceps

Question 37

What does the quadriceps reflex assess?

Answer 37

L4 to L6 spinal nerves and femoral nerve

Question 38

How do you test the quadriceps reflex?

Answer 38

Slightly flex the stifle and tap on the patella tendon with the pleximeter

Question 39

What is the normal quadriceps reflex?

Answer 39

Forward movement of the tibia and extension of the stifle

Question 40

What does the cranial tibial reflex test?

Answer 40

Peroneal branch of the sciatic nerve (L6-7 segement of the spinal cord)

Question 41

How do you test the cranial tibial reflex?

Answer 41

Percussion of the cranial tibial muscle

Question 42

What is a normal cranial tibial reflex?

Answer 42

Flexion of the hock

Question 43

What is the gastrocnemius reflex assessing?

Answer 43

L7 to S1 spinal nerves and tibial branch of the sciatic nerve

Question 44

How is the gastrocnemius reflex tested?

Answer 44

Flex and abduct the hock by holding the limb over the metatarsus, keep hock flexed, keeping the tendon tight. Then hit it.

Question 45

What is a normal gastrocnemius reflex?

Answer 45

Extension of the tarsus

Question 46

What is the extensor carpi radialis reflex assessing?

Answer 46

Radial nerve integrity (C7-T1)

Question 47

How is the carpi radialis reflex tested?

Answer 47

Carpus and elbow lightly flexed and antebrachium supported. Extensor carpi radialis muscle struck just distal to the elbow.

Question 48

What is the normal carpi radialis reflex?

Answer 48

Slight extension of the carpus

Question 49

What is the triceps reflex assessing?

Answer 49

Radial nerve integrity

Question 50

How is the triceps reflex tested?

Answer 50

Same position as extensor carpi radialis, but plexor taps the triceps msucle tendon just proximal to the elbow.

Question 51

What is the normal triceps reflex?

Answer 51

Slight extension of the elbow

Question 52

What is the biceps reflex assessing?

Answer 52

Musculocutaneous nerve (C6-8 spinal cord segements)

Question 53

How is the biceps reflex tested?

Answer 53

Pulling the limb slightly caudally, place afinger over the biceps tendon and tap the finger with the plexor

Question 54

What is a normal biceps reflex?

Answer 54

Slight flexion of the elbow

Question 55

What are the three main objectives of doing the superficial spinal pain sensation test?

Answer 55

Map areas of increased sensation, decreased sensation, and ensure the patient can perceive noxious stimuli

Question 56

In what direction do you test superficial spinal pain?

Answer 56

Distal to proximal, caudal to crainal

Question 57

What is the cutaneous reflex?

Answer 57

Contraction of the cutaneous trunci muscle producing skin twitching from stimulation of cutaneous sensory fibers

Question 58

What pathway is the cutaneous reflex testing?

Answer 58

Synapse bilaterally at C8 to T1 segemnts with motor neurons at the lateral toracic nerve that innervates the cutaneous trunci muscle

Question 59

How do test the cutaneous reflex?

Answer 59

Lightly pinching or poking the skin beginning at L4 and progressing cranially

Question 60

What is a normal cutaneous reflex?

Answer 60

Muscles underneath will cause the skin to temporarily crawl

Question 61

When do you know there is an abnormal cutaneous reflex?

Answer 61

Junction where the skin no longer crawls to stimuli tells you where the nerve injury most likely is. Infected nerve root is normally 1 to 2 vertebrae in front

Question 62

How is the withdrawl reflex testing?

Answer 62

Touching or pinching skin of the toe web.

Question 63

What is a normal withdrawl reflex?

Answer 63

Flexion in all joints

Question 64

What does the withdrawl reflex NOT indicate?

Answer 64

Motor or concious perception. It is a simple reflex arc and does not indicate an intact spinal pathway

Question 65

What nerves does the withdrawl reflex assess?

Answer 65

C6-T2 and L4-S3

Question 66

How do you test the perineal reflex?

Answer 66

Lightly pinching or touch the tissue of the perineum with an instrument

Question 67

What is a normal perineal reflex?

Answer 67

Contraction of the anal sphincter

Question 68

What does the perineal reflex test?

Answer 68

S1 to S3 spinal nerves and pudendal nerve

Question 69

When do you see a loss of perineal reflex?

Answer 69

Severe spinal cord injurie

Question 70

What is paresis?

Answer 70

Reduced voluntary motor function

Question 71

What is plegia?

Answer 71

Loss of motor function

Question 72

How is the deep pain sensation tested?

Answer 72

Hemostat firmly pinches the digit

Question 73

What is the normal response to deep pain?

Answer 73

Withdrawl of the foot is not enough here, this should really hurt. Behavioral pain response needs to occur

Question 74

What does the deep pain response assess?

Answer 74

Deep motor spinal cord pathways (spinoreticular and propriospinal)

Question 75

When should the deep pain response be done?

Answer 75

When superficial sensory pathways are absent

Question 76

What are the signs to having upper motor neuron problems?

Answer 76

Increased muscle tone, normal/hyper-reflexes, decreased proprioception, and decreased pain sensation

Question 77

What are the signs of having lower motor neuron issues?

Answer 77

Flaccid muscle tone, hypo-reflexes, prominent muscle atrophy, decreased proprioception, and decreased pain sensation.

Question 78

CN I

Answer 78

Olfactory

Question 79

CN II

Answer 79

Optic

Question 80

CN III

Answer 80

Oculomotor

Question 81

CN IV

Answer 81

Trochlear

Question 82

CN V

Answer 82

Trigeminal

Question 83

CN VI

Answer 83

Abducens

Question 84

CN VII

Answer 84

Facial

Question 85

CN VIII

Answer 85

Vestibulocochlear

Question 86

CN IX

Answer 86

Glossopharyngeal

Question 87

CN X

Answer 87

Vagus

Question 88

CN XI

Answer 88

Accessory

Question 89

CN XII

Answer 89

Hypoglossal