Term | Definition |
Alzheimer's Disease | a group of disorders involving the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. It is marked by progressive deterioration that affects both the memory and reasoning capabilities of an individual |
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis | aka: Lou Gehrig’s disease rapidly
progressive neurological disease that attacks the nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscles. Patients affected with this condition become progressively weaker until they are completely paralyzed and die |
Anesthetic | the medication used to induce anesthesia. |
Anesthetist | a medical professional who specializes in administering anesthesia, but is not a physician, for example, a nurse anesthetist |
Autism | describes a group of conditions in which a young child cannot develop normal social relationships, compulsively follows repetitive routines, and frequently has poor communication skills |
Bell's Palsy | the temporary paralysis of the seventh cranial nerve that causes paralysis only of the affected side of the face |
Cerebral contusion | the bruising of brain tissue as the result of a head injury that causes the brain to bounce against the rigid bone of the skull |
cerbrovascular accident | damage to the brain that occurs when the blood flow to the brain is disrupted because a blood vessel is either blocked or has ruptured. |
cognition | describes the mental activities associated with thinking, learning, and memory. |
coma | a profound (deep) state of unconsciousness marked by the absence of spontaneous eye movements, no response to painful stimuli, and the lack of speech. |
concussion | a violent shaking up or jarring of the brain |
cranial hematoma | a collection of blood trapped in the tissues of the brain |
delirium | cute condition of confusion, disorientation, disordered thinking and memory, agitation, and hallucinations |
dementia | slowly progressive decline in mental abilities, including memory, thinking, and judgment, that is often accompanied by personality changes. |
dyslexia | a learning disability characterized by substandard reading achievement due to the inability of the brain to process symbols |
encephalitis | an inflammation of the brain, can be caused by a viral infection such as rabies |
epidural anesthesia | regional anesthesia produced by injecting a
local anesthetic into the epidural space of the lumbar
or sacral region of the spine |
Guillain-Barre Syndrome | an inflammation of the myelin sheath of peripheral nerves, characterized by rapidly worsening muscle weakness that can lead to temporary paralysis |
Hallucination | a sensory perception (sight, touch, sound, smell, or taste) experienced in the absence of an external stimulation. |
ischemic stroke | the most common type of stroke in older people, occurs when the flow of blood to the brain is blocked. |
lethargy | a lowered level of consciousness marked by listlessness, drowsiness, and apathy |
menigitis | inflammation of the meninges of the brain and spinal cord |
migraine headache | can be preceded by a warning aura, is characterized by throbbing pain on one side of the head. |
multiple sclerosis | a progressive autoimmune disorder characterized by inflammation that causes demyelination of the myelin sheath |
obsessive compulsive disorder | an anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent, unwanted obsessions and/or recurrent
compulsions |
parkinson's disease | a chronic, degenerative central nervous disorder characterized by fine muscle tremors, rigidity, and a slow or shuffling gait. |
Reye's syndrome | a potentially serious or deadly disorder in children that is characterized by vomiting and confusion. This syndrome usually follows a viral illness in which the child was treated with aspirin. |
schizophrenia | psychotic disorder usually characterized by withdrawal from reality, illogical patterns of thinking, delusions, and hallucinations, and accompanied in varying degrees by other emotional, behavioral,or intellectual disturbances |
Shaken baby syndrome | the results of a child being violently shaken by someone. This action can cause brain injury, blindness, fractures, seizures, paralysis, and death |
syncope | also known as fainting, is the brief loss of consciousness caused by the decreased flow of blood to the brain. |