Neuro: Lecture 1 Flashcards
(20 cards)
What is Capgras Delusion?
A recurrent belief that a person has been replaced by an imposter due to a right hemisphere lesion.
Example: A person believes their spouse has been replaced by a look-alike.
What characterizes Stiffperson syndrome?
Diffuse stiffness without weakness or numbness, classified as an autoimmune syndrome.
What is prosopagnosia?
An inability to recognize faces of familiar people caused by a right hemisphere lesion.
Steps to neurological diagnosis
- take history and perform neuro exam
- interpret signs and symptoms
- localize lesion, formulate syndrome
- determine anatomic diagnosis, mode of onset and course, appropriate lab tests
levels of consciousness
alert, lethargic, stupor, coma
lethargic
appears asleep, may be aroused with stimulation to interact with environment
stupor
arouses briefly to vigorous stimuli, but not to the point of being interactive
coma
unresponsive to external stimuli
apraxia
inability to carry out a motor act in the absence of weakness or ataxia
lateral versus ventral spinothalamic tract
lateral: pain and temp (small fibers)
ventral: light touch
station
attitude or manner of standing, including posture
what are lumbar punctures used to diagnose
meningitis, encephalitis, MS, pseudotumor cerebri, cancer
where are lumbar punctures performed
L3-L5
pseudotumor cerebri
idiopathic intracranial hypertension (high opening pressure)
different coloration meaning on CT
bright (hyper dense): calcium, bone, blood
dark (Hypodense): CSF, fat, stroke, edema, fluid, air
white matter is darker than grey matter
what are myelographies used for?
visualization of subarachnoid space
what are evoked potentials used for?
MS, brainstem lesions, acoustic neuroma, SCI
evoked potentials
recording of electrical activity in central sensory pathways produced by visual, auditory, or sensory stimulation
what is proximal weakness usually associated with?
myopathy
