Question | Answer |
Afferent Nerves | Transmitters of nerve impulses towards the CNS; sensory nerves. |
Agraphia | inability to convert one's thoughts into writing. |
Alexia | inability to understand written words. |
Analgesia | without sensitivity to pain. |
Anesthesia | without feeling or sensation. |
Aneurysm | dilatation in the wall of an artery |
Aphasia | inability to communicate through speech, writing, or signs. |
Ataxia | without muscular coordination |
Aura | props the onset of a headache or epileptic seizure. |
Autonomic Nervous System | regulates the involuntary vital functions of the body, activities involving the heart muscle, smooth muscles, and glands. |
Axon | transports nerve impulses away from the nerve cell body. |
Blood-Brain Barrier | protective characteristics of the capillary walls of the brain. prevents that passage of harmful substances from the bloodstream into the brain tissue or CSF. |
Bradykinesia | abnormally slow movement. |
Brain Stem | stemlike portion of the brain that connects the cerebral hemisphere with the spinal cord. |
Brudzinki's Sign | positive sign of meningitis. |
Burr Hole | hole drilled into the skull |
Cell Body | contains the nucleus and cytoplasm. |
Central Nervous System | 1 of the 2 main divisions of the nervous system, contains the brain and spinal. |
Cephalgia | headache. |
Cerebellum | part of brain responsible for coordinating voluntary muscular movement; located behind the brain stem. |
Cerebral Concussion | breif interupption of the brain function, ususally with the loss of conciousness last for a few seconds. |
Cerebral Contusion | small scattered venous hemorrhages in the brain; "bruise" of the brain tissue. |
Cerebrospinal Fluid | fluid flowing through the brain and around the spinal cord that protects them from physical blow or impact. |
Cerebrum | largest part of the brain. controls memory, sensation, emotions, and voluntary movements. |
Coma | deep sleep. |
Craniotomy | surgical incision into the cranium or skull. |
Deficit | any deficiency or variation of the normal. |
Dementia | mental disorder with deteriorating memory, judgement, and no ability to think. |
Demyelination | destruction or removal of the myelin sheath. |
Dysphasia | difficult speech. |
Efferent Nerves | transmitters of nerve impulses away from the CNS; motor nerves |
Hemiplegia | paralysis of one half of the body (left or right side) |
Herpes Zoster | acute infection caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox; shingles. |
Hyperesthesia | excessive sensitivity to sensory stimuli; such as pain or touch. |
Interneurons | connecting neurons that conduct implses from afferent nerves to efferent nerves. |
Lethargy | sluggish. |
Medulla Oblongata | most essential part of the brain. contains the cardiac, vascomotor, and respiratory centers of the brain. |
Meninges | 3 layers of protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. |
Myelin Sheath | protective sheath that covers the axons. |
Narcolepsy | uncontrolled, sudden attacks of sleep. |
Nerve | cordlike bundle of nerve fibers that transmit impulses to and from the brain and spinal cord to other parts of the body; it's macroscopic. |
Nerve Block | injection of a local anesthetic along the course of a nerve(s) to eliminate sensation to an area; conduction anesthesia. |
Neuralgia | severe, sharp, spasmlike pain. |
Neuritis | inflammation of a nerve. |
Neurolgia | supporting tissue of the nervous system. |
Neurologist | physician who specializes in treating the diseases and disorders of the nervous system. |
Neurology | the study of the nervous system. |
Neuron | a nerve cell. |
Neurosurgeon | physician who specializes in surgery of the nervous system. |
Neurosurgery | any surgery involving the nervous system. |
Neurotransmitter | chemical substance within the body that activates or inhibits the transmission of nerve impulses or synapses. |
Nuchal Rigidity | rigidity of the neck. (seen in patients with meningitis) |
Occlusion | blockage. |
Oligodendrocyte | type of neurogical cell found in the interstital tissue of the nervous system. |
Palliative | soothing. |
Paraplegia | paralysis of the lower extremeties of the trunk, due to spinal cord injuries. |
Parasympathetic Nerves | nerves of the ANS that regulate essential involuntary body functions such as slowing the heart rate, increases peristalsis of intestines, increasing glandular secretions, and relaxing sphincters. |
Paresthesia | sensation of numbness or tingling. |
Peripheral Nervous System | part of the nervous system outside the CNS; consisting of 12 pairs of cranial nerves and 31 pairs of spinal nerves. |
Phagocytes | to eat. |
Pineal Body | small cone-shaped structure thought to be involved in regulating the body's biological clock and that produces melatonin; pineal gland. |
Plexus | network of interwoven nerves. |
Quadriplegia | paralysis of 4 extremities and the trunk of the body; caused by injury to the spinal cord at the level of the cervical vertebrae. |
Receptor | sensory nerve ending. |
Sciatica | inflammation of the sciactic nerve. |
Sensory | pertaining to sensation. |
Sensory Nerves | afferent nerves. |
Somatic Nervous System | the part of the PNS that provides voluntary control over skeletal muscle contractions. |
Stupor | a state of lethargy. |
Subarachnoid Space | space located just under the arachnoid membrane that contains CSF. |
Sympathetic Nerves | nerves of the ANS that regulate essential involuntary body functions such as increasing the heart rate, constricting blood vessels, and raising the blood pressure. |
Synapse | the space between nerves |
Syncope | fainting |
Thalamus | part of the brain located between the cerebral hemispheres and the midbrain. receives all sensory stimuli, except those of smell. |
Thrombosis | abnormal condition in which a clot develops in a blood vessel. |
Ventricle, Brain | small hollow within the brain that is filled with cerebrospinal fluid. |
Whiplash | injury to the cervical vertebrae due to a sudden back-and-forth jerking movement of the head and neck. |
Alzheimer's Disease | deterioration of a person's intellectual functioning. |
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) | severe weakening and wasting of the involved muscle groups, usually beginning with the hands and progressing to shoulders, upper arms, and legs. |
Anencephaly | absence of the brain and spinal cord at birth, a congenital disorder. |
Bell's Palsy | temporary or permanent unilateral weakness or paralysis of the muscles in the face following trauma in the face. |
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome | pinching or compression of the median nerves within the carpal tunnel due to inflammation and swelling of the tendons. |
Cerebral Palsy | brain damage that is permanent but not progressive. characterized by child's lack of control of voluntary muscles. |
Cerebrovascular Accident, CVA | results from a decrease in blood flow (ischemia) to the area of the brain; stroke. |
Degenerative Disk | deteriorization of the intervertebral disk. |
Encephalitis | inflammation of the brain or cord tissue. |
Epilepsy | syndrome of recurring episodes of excessive irregular electrical activity in the brain; seizures. |
Grand Mal Seizure | epileptic seizure characterized by a sudden loss of conciousness. |
Petit Mal Seizure | small seizures in which there is a sudden loss of conciousness lasting only a few seconds; absence seizures. |
Guillain-Barre Syndrome | acute polyneuritis (inflammation of many nerves) of the PNS in which the myelin sheaths on the axons are destroyed. decrease nerve pulses. loss of reflex response, and muscle weakness. |
Migraine Headache | recurring, pulsating, vascular headache usually devoloping on 1 side of the head. |
Cluster Headache | occurs typically 2 or 3 hours after falling asleep; pain around 1 eye that wakens the person from sleep. |
Tension Headache | occcurs from long, endured contraction of the skeletal muscles around the face, scalp, upper back, and neck. |
Hematoma, Subdural | collection of blood below the dura mater and above the arachnoid layer of meninges. |
Herniated Disk | rupture or herniation of the disk center. causes pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots. |
Huntington's Chorea | inherited neurological disease characterized by rapid, jerky, involuntary movements, and increases dementia. |
Hydrocephalus | abnormal increase of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain. |
Meningitis (acute bacterial) | serious bacterial infections of the meninges- covering the brain and spinal cord. |
Multiple Sclerosis | degenerative inflammatory disease of the CNS attacking the myelin sheath in the spinal cord or brain. |
Neuroblastoma | highly malignant tumor of the sympathetic nervous system. |
Parkinson's Disease | degenerative, slowly progressive deteriorating of nerves in the brain stem's motor system. |
Reye's Syndrome | acute brain encephalopathy along with fatty infiltration of the internal organs. occurs in children (ages 5-11) with fatal result. |
Cerebral Angiography | visualization of the cerebral vascular system via X-ray after the injection of a radiopaque contrast medium into an arterial blood vessel. |
CT Scan of the Brain | analysis of 3-dimentional view of brain tissue obtained as X-ray beams pass through successive horizontal layers of the brain |
Electroencephalography, (EEG) | measurement of electrical activity produced by the brain and recorded through electrodes placed on the scalp |
Lumbar Puncture | insertion of a hollow needle and stylet into the subarachnoid space. |
Magnetic Resonance Imagining (MRI) | noninvasive scanning procedure that provides visulization of fluid, soft tissue, & bony structures without the use of radiation. |
Neuroectomy | neosurgical procedure to relieve pain in a small area by incision of cranial and peripheral nerves. |
PET Scan | produces computerized radiographic images of various body structures when radioactive substances are inahled or injected. (POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY) |
Romberg Test | used to evaluate cerebellar function and balance. |
TENS | form of cutaneous stimulation for pain relief that supplies electrical impulses to the nerve endings of a nerve close to the pain site. (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) |