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MT Nervous System
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| cerebr/o, encephal/o | brain |
| cerebell/o | cerebellum |
| lob/o | lobe |
| cephalo/o | head |
| crani/o | head, skull |
| mening/o, meningi/o | meninges (membrane surrounding the brain and spinal chord) |
| dur/o | dura (tough outer membrane surrounding the brain and spinal cord) |
| neur/o | nerve |
| gangli/o | nerve bundle |
| myel/o | spinal cord, bone marrow |
| esthesi/o | feeling, sensation |
| phas/o | speech |
| phren/o, psych/o | mind |
| somn/o, somn/i, hypn/o | sleep |
| gnosi/o | know |
| -mania | excessive desire |
| -phobia | excessive fear or sesntivity |
| -paresis | slight or partial paralysis |
| ton/o | muscle tone, tension, pressure |
| tax/o | arrangement, order, coordination |
| -plegia | paralysis |
| -asthenia | weakness |
| aphasia | inability to speak |
| ataxia | lack of coordination |
| catatonia | condition characterized by reduced muscle tone |
| delirium | brief loss of mental function |
| dementia | loss/decline in mental function |
| dyskinesia | difficulty moving |
| dyslexia | difficulty reading |
| dysphasia | difficulty speaking |
| dystonia | condition characterized by involuntary muscle movements |
| insomnia | inability to sleep |
| myoclonus | muscle twitching |
| myospasm | involuntary muscle contration |
| neurasthenia | nerve weakness |
| somnambulism | sleep walking |
| syncope | fainting; losing consciousness due to temporary loss of blood flow to brain |
| cephalalgia, cephalodynia | head pain |
| encephalalgia | brain pain |
| neuralgia, neurodynia | nerve pain |
| hemiparesis | partial paralysis on half of the body |
| hemiplegia | paralysis on half the body |
| monoparesis | partial paralysis of one limb |
| monoplegia | paralysis of one limb |
| paralysis | complete loss of sensation and motor function |
| paresis | partial paralysis characterized by varying degrees of sensation and motor function |
| causalgia | painful sensation of burning |
| dysesthesia | bad feeling |
| hyperesthesia | increased sensation |
| paresthesia | abnormal sensation (usually numbness or tingling in the skin) |
| pseudesthesia | false sensation |
| synesthesia | condition where one sensation is experienced as another |
| acrophobia | fear of heights |
| agoraphobia | fear of outdoor spaces |
| hydrophobia | fear of water |
| kleptomania | desire to steal |
| photophobia | excessive sensitivity to light |
| pyromania | desire to set fire |
| echoencephalography | procedure used to examine the brain using sound waves |
| electroencephalography (EEG) | procedure used to examine the electrical activity of the brain |
| lumbar puncture (LP) | inserting a needle into the lumbar region of the spine in order to collect spinal fluid, commonly called a spinal tap |
| cerebral angiography | procedure used to examine blood vessels in the brain |
| magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) | procedure used to examine blood vessels |
| myelogram | image of the spinal cord, usually done using x-ray |
| positron emission tomography (PET) scan | an imaging procedure that uses radiation (positrons) to produce cross sections of the brain |
| transcranial Doppler sonography | an imaging technique that produces an image of the brain using sound waves sent through the skull |
| cerebellitis | inflammation of the cerebellum |
| cerebral atrophy | wasting away of brain tissue |
| duritis | inflammation of the dura |
| encephalocele | hernia of the brain (normally through a defect in the skull) |
| hematoma | tumorlike mass made up of blood |
| cranial hematoma | a hematoma beneath the skull |
| epidural hematoma | a hematoma located on top of the dura |
| intracerebral hematoma | a hematoma located inside the brain |
| subdural hematoma | a hematoma located beneath the dura |
| macrocephaly | abnormally large head |
| meningocele | a hernia of the meninges |
| microcephaly | abnormally small head |
| myelocele | a hernia of the spinal cord |
| myelomalacia | abnormal softening of the spinal cord |
| myelomeningocele | a hernia of the spinal cord and meninges |
| neuritis | nerve inflammation |
| neurosclerosis | hardening of nerves |
| polyneuritis | inflammation of mutliple nerves |
| neuroma | nerve tumor |
| agnosia | inability to comprehend |
| apathy | lack of emotion |
| hyperkinesia | increase in muscle movement or activity |
| neurasthenia | nerve weakness |
| neuroglycopenia | deficiency of sugar that interferes with normal activity |
| nystagmus | involuntary back-and-forth eye movements |
| prosopagnosia | inability to recognize faces |
| anesthesiologist | doctor who specialized in anesthesiology |
| afferent nerve | a nerve that carries impulses toward the central nervous system |
| efferent nerve | a nerve that carries impulses away from the central nervous system |
| neurogenic | originating from/created by nerves |
| psychiatrist | doctor who specializes in treatment of the mind |
| psychiatry | branch of medicine that focuses on the treatment of the mind |
| psychgenic | originating in/created by the mind |
| psychologist | doctor who specializes in the study of the mind |
| psychology | brach of medicine that focuses on the study of the mind |
| psychosomatic | pertaining to the relationship between the body and the mind |
| idiopathic | having no known cause or origin |
| interictal | time between seizures |
| postictal | time after a seizure |
| preictal | time before a seizure |
| clonus | muscle spasm or twitching |
| tonic-clonic seizure | a seizure characterized by both a tonic and a clonic phase |
| tonic | pertaining to muscle tone (normally weak and unresponsive) |
| cerebrovascular accident (CVA) | an accident involving the blood vessels of the brain |
| stroke | loss of brain function caused by interruption of blood flow/ supply to the brain |
| hemorrhagic stroke | a stroke where the blood loss is caused by the rupture of a blood vessel |
| ischemic stroke | a stroke where the blood loss is caused by a blockage |
| transient ischemic attack (TIA) | a "mini-stroke" caused by the blockage of a blood vessel, which resolves (goes away) within 24 hours |
| cerebrovascular disease | a disease of the blood vessels of the brain |
| cerebral anuerysm | the widening of abnormal dilation of a blood vessel in the brain |
| cerebral anteriosclerosis | the hardening of an artery in the brain |
| cerebral atherosclerosis | the hardening of an artery in the brain caused by the buildup of fatty plaque |
| cerebral embolism | the blockage of a blood vessel in the brain caused by a foreign object (embolus) such as fat or bacteria |
| cerebral thrombosis | the blockage of a blood vessel in the brain caused by a blood clot |
| craniomalacia | abnormal softening of the skull |
| craniosclerosis | abnormal hardening of the skull |
| craniostenosis | abnormal narrowing of the skull |
| craniosynostosis | premature fusing of the skull bones |
| hydrocephly | abnormal accumulation of spinal fluid in the brain |
| astrocytoma | a tumor arising from astrocyte (star-shaped) glial cells |
| ganglioma | ganglion tumor |
| glioblastoma | a brain tumor arising from gliobast cells |
| meningioma | tumor of the meninges |
| cerebellitis | inflammation of the cerebellum |
| encephalitis | inflammation of the brain |
| cerebromeningitis | inflammation of the brain and meninges |
| encephalomyelitis | inflammation of the brain and spinal cord |
| encephalomyeloneuropathy | disease of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves |
| encephalopathy | disease of the brain |
| encephalopyosis | a pus-filled abscess in the brain |
| gangliitis | inflammation of a ganglion |
| intracerebral hemorrhage | excessive bleeding inside the brain |
| meningopathy | disease of the meninges |
| meningitis | inflammatino fo the meninges |
| meningoencephalitis | inflammation of the meninges and brain |
| myelitis | inflammation of the spinal cord |
| myelodysplasia | defective formation of the spinal cord |
| myelopathy | disease of the spinal cord |
| neuroarthropathy | disease of the joint associated with nerves |
| neuroencephalomyelopathy | disease of the nerves, brain, and spinal cord |
| neuropathy | disease of the nervous system |
| poliomyelitis | inflammation of the gray matter of the spinal cord (aka polio) |
| polyneutropathy | disease affecting multiple nerves |
| amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) | a degenerative disease of the central nervous system causing loss of muscle control. Literally, the hardening of the lateral nerve cells of the spine leading to the loss of muscle tissue from disuse |
| anorexia | eating disorder by the patient's restricting food or refusing to eat |
| autism | a psychiatric disorder characterized by difficulties in social communication and interaction, as well as repetitive and/or restrictive patterns of behavior or interests. |
| bulimia | eating disorder characterized by overeating and usually followed by forced purging or getting rid of food |
| cerebral palsy | paralysis caused by damage to the are of the brain responsible for movement |
| dysphoria | a negative emotional state |
| epilepsy | a disease marked by seizures |
| euphoria | a positive emotional state |
| hypomania | a mental state just below mania |
| manic depression (bipolar disorder) | a psychiatric disorder characterized by alternating bouts of excitement and depression |
| myasthenia | muscle weakness |
| narcolepsy | a disease characterized by sudden, uncontrolled sleepiness |
| psychopathy | a mental illness |
| schizophrenia | a mental illness characterized by delusions, hallucinations, and disordered speech |
| neurosis | a nerve condition |
| psychosis | a mind condition |
| anesthetic | a drug that causes loss of sensation |
| general anesthetic | anesthetic that causes complete loss of consciousness |
| local anesthetic | anesthetic that does not affect consciousness |
| regional anesthetic | anesthetic that is injected into a nerve, causing loss of sensation over a particular area |
| topical anesthetic | local anesthesia applied to the surface of the area to be anesthetized |
| epidural anesthetic | anesthetic applied in the dural region of the spinal cord |
| analgesic | a drug that relieves pain |
| anticonvulsant | a drug that opposes convulsions |
| antidepressant | a drug that opposes depression |
| antipsychotic | a drug that opposes psychoses |
| anxiolytic | a drug that lessens anxiety |
| hypnotic | a drug that aids sleep |
| neuropharmacology | a study of the effects of drugs on the nervous system |
| psychopharamacology | the study of the effects of drugs on mental processes |
| psychotropic | drugs that are able to turn th emind |
| thrombolytic | a drug that dissolves clots |
| cerebrotomy | incision into the brain |
| chemotherapy | treatment using chemicals |
| craniectomy | removal of a piece of the skull |
| craniotomy | incision into the skull |
| endarterectomy | removal of the inside of an artery |
| endovascular neurosurgery | surgery on the nervous system performed by entering the body through blood vessels |
| lobectomy | removal of a lobe |
| lobotomy | incision into a lobe |
| neruectomy | removal of a nerve |
| neurolysis | destruction of nerve tissue |
| neuroplasty | reconstruction of a nerve |
| neurorrhaphy | suturing of a nerve (often the severed ends of a nerve) |
| neurotomy | incision into a nerve |
| ADHD | attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder |
| ALS | amyotrophic lateral sclerosis |
| CNS | central nervous system |
| CP | cerebral palsy |
| CSF | cerebrospinal fluid |
| CVA | cerebrovascular accident |
| EEG | electroencephalogram |
| EMG | electromyogram |
| ICP | intracranial pressure |
| LOC | level of consciousness |
| LP | lumbar puncture |
| MRA | magnetic resonance angiography |
| MS | multiple sclerosis |
| OCD | obsessive compulsive disorder |
| PET | positron emission tomography |
| PNS | peripheral nervous system |
| TIA | transient ischemic attack |