Neuropathies Flashcards
(9 cards)
Signs of femoral neuropathy?
This nerve condition can lead to difficulties moving around. Your leg or knee might feel weak, and you may be unable to put pressure on the affected leg.
numbness in any part of the leg (typically the front and inside of the thigh, but potentially all the way down to the feet)
tingling in any part of the leg
dull aching pain in the genital region
lower extremity muscle weakness
difficulty extending the knee due to quadriceps weakness
feeling like your leg or knee is going to give out (buckle) on you
Describe Polyneuropathy?
The effect of this is to cause symptoms in more than one part of the body, often symmetrically on left and right sides.
As for any neuropathy, the chief symptoms include motor symptoms such as weakness or clumsiness of movement; and sensory symptoms such as unusual or unpleasant sensations such as tingling or burning;
reduced ability to feel sensations such as texture or temperature, and impaired balance when standing or walking.
In many polyneuropathies, these symptoms occur first and most severely in the feet. Autonomic symptoms also may occur, such as dizziness on standing up, erectile dysfunction, and difficulty controlling urination
Diabetic neuropathy is the most common cause of this pattern. In demyelinating polyneuropathies, the myelin sheath around axons is damaged, which affects the ability of the axons to conduct electrical impulses. The third and least common pattern affects the cell bodies of neurons directly. This usually picks out either the motor neurons (known as motor neuron disease) or the sensory neurons (known as sensory neuronopathy or dorsal root ganglionopathy).
Signs of Peripheral NEuropathy?
After ruling out a lesion in the central nervous system-
most commonly have distal sensory or motor and sensory loss, although those with a pathology (problem) of the nerves may be perfectly normal;
may show proximal weakness, as in some inflammatory neuropathies, such as Guillain–Barré syndrome;
or may show focal sensory disturbance or weakness, such as in mononeuropathies. Classically, ankle jerk reflex is absent in peripheral neuropathy.
PN exam?
A physical examination will involve testing the deep ankle reflex as well as examining the feet for any ulceration. For large fiber neuropathy, an exam will usually show an abnormally decreased sensation to vibration, which is tested with a 128-Hz tuning fork, and decreased sensation of light touch when touched by a nylon monofilament.[27]
Horners syndrome is asociated with Brachial Plexus neuropathy - what is it?
Horner syndrome is rare, but it can indicate BPN. Horner’s syndrome is caused by an interruption in the nerve signals that control parts of the face. It’s usually caused by an injury to the nerves of the brachial plexus. The symptoms of Horner’s syndrome include:
constriction of the pupil, which makes it very small
drooping eyelid
an inability to sweat in the affected area of the face
Causes of Cervical Myelopathy?
Arthiritis
Injury. An injury to the neck—such as from a car accident, sports, or a fall—may also lead to myelopathy.
Sings of PN?
Polyneuropathy can have a wide variety of causes, including exposure to certain toxins such as with alcohol abuse, poor nutrition (particularly vitamin B deficiency), and complications from diseases such as cancer or kidney failure.
because people with chronic polyneuropathy often lose their ability to sense temperature and pain, they can burn themselves and develop open sores as the result of injury or prolonged pressure. If the nerves serving the organs are involved, diarrhea or constipation may result, as well as loss of bowel or bladder control. Sexual dysfunction and abnormally low blood pressure also can occur.
What is Guillain Barr syndrome?
One of the most serious polyneuropathies is Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare disease that strikes suddenly when the body’s immune system attacks nerves in the body just as they leave the spinal cord. Symptoms tend to appear quickly and worsen rapidly, sometimes leading to paralysis. Early symptoms include weakness and tingling that eventually may spread upward into the arms. Blood pressure problems, heart rhythm problems, and breathing difficulty may occur in the more severe cases. However, despite the severity of the disease, recovery rates are good when patients receive treatment early.
During the acute phase, the disorder can be life-threatening, with about 15% developing weakness of the breathing muscles requiring mechanical ventilation.[1] Some are affected by changes in the function of the autonomic nervous system, which can lead to dangerous abnormalities in heart rate and blood pressure.[2]
Many people with Guillain–Barré syndrome have experienced the signs and symptoms of an infection in the 3–6 weeks prior to the onset of the neurological symptoms. This may consist of upper respiratory tract infection (rhinitis, sore throat) or diarrhea.[8]
Causes of PN?
Diabetes
Several rare inherited diseases
Alcoholism
Poor nutrition or vitamin deficiency
Certain kinds of cancer and chemotherapy used to treat them
Conditions where nerves are mistakenly attacked by the body’s own immune system or damaged by an overaggressive response to injury
Certain medications
Kidney or thyroid disease
Infections such as Lyme disease, shingles, or AIDS
Hereditary neuropathies are not as common. Hereditary neuropathies are diseases of the peripheral nerves that are genetically passed from parent to child. The most common of these is Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1. It is characterized by weakness in the legs and, to a lesser degree, the arms – symptoms that usually appear between mid-childhood and age 30. This disease is caused by degeneration of the insulation that normally surrounds the nerves and helps them conduct the electrical impulses needed for them to trigger muscle movement.
