Question | Answer |
central nervous system (CNS) | brain & spinal cord |
peripheral nervous system | cranial nerves & spinal nerves & branches from these nerves |
nerve cell body | axon & dendrite |
axon | takes signals away from cell body |
dendrite | takes signals toward cell body |
neurotransmitter | chemical that transmits signal from a nerve to another nerve or a muscle |
myelin | protect sheath around axon; increases speed of signal movement |
neuroglia | cell that supports neurons but doesn't send signal |
Brain - four main divisions | cerebral hemispheres & diencephalon & brainstem & cerebellum |
cerebral hemispheres | consciousness, judgments, voluntary actions |
cerebral cortex | gray matter (nerve cell bodies) |
white matter | axons |
diencephalon | thalamus (relay center) & hypothalamus (control center) |
brainstem | controls vital functions like heart rate & respiratory rate |
cerebellum | helps co-ordinate voluntary movements; helps with balance & equilibrium |
brain dead | none of the four parts are functioning; will die if not on respirator |
persistent vegetative state | brainstem still functioning so vital signs (breathing on own; heart beating) okay |
spinal cord | ascending tracts & descending tracts |
ascending tracts | sensory |
descending tracts | motor |
dura mater | "tough mother" most superficial layer |
arachnoid | "spider-like" middle layer |
pia mater | "soft mother" deepest layer |
sensory neurons | send signals toward central nervous system |
motor neurons | send signals toward periphery |
somatic nervous system | signal to skeletal muscles (voluntary) |
autonomic nervous system | signal to smooth muscle & cardiac muscle (involuntary) has two divisions |
sympathetic | fight or flight |
parasympathetic | predominate when at rest |
meningitis | inflammation of the meninges |
meningocele | herniation of meninges through defect in vertebral column |
myelomeningocele | herniation of spinal cord & meninges through defect in vertebral column |
poliomyelitis | inflammation of the gray matter of spinal cord |
polyneuritis | inflammation of many nerves |
neurology | study of the nervous system |
cerebrovascular accident (CVA) | stroke; caused by thrombosis or hemorrhage |
transient ischemia attack (TIA) | transient interference with blood supply to brain without permanent loss of function |