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Duke PA Coma

Quiz yourself by thinking what should be in each of the black spaces below before clicking on it to display the answer.
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Question
Answer
Consciousness requires an __   intact and functioning brain stem reticular activating system and its cortical projections  
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__ result in coma either by expanding across the midline laterally to compromise both cerebral hemispheres or by impinging on the brain stem to compress the rostral reticular formation   hemispheric mass lesions  
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hemispheric lesions of adequate size to produce coma are readily seen on __   CT  
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__ produce coma by directly affecting the reticular formation   brain stem mass lesions  
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a comatose patient without imparied reflex lateral eye movements does not have a __   mass lesion compromising brain stem structures in the posterior fossa  
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metabolic abnormalities result in diffuse dysfunction of the nervous system and therefore produce, with rare exceptions, __   no localized signs such as hemiparesis or unilateral pupillary dilation  
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the diagnosis of __ means that the examiner has found no focal anatomic features on examination or neuroimaging studies to explain coma   metabolic encephalopathy  
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once a seizure stops the __ can also cause unexplained coma   postictal state  
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leading up to coma a premonitory headache supports a diagnosis of __   meningitis, encephalitis, or intracerebral or subarachnoid hemorrhage  
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leading up to coma a period of intoxication, confusion, or delirium points to   diffuse process such as meningitis, or endogenous or exogenous toxins  
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the sudden apoplectic onset of coma is particularly suggestive of   ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke affecting the brain stem or of subarachnoid hemorrhage or intracerebral hemorrhage with intraventricular rupture  
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Lateral symptoms of hemiparesis or aphasia before coma occur in patients with   hemispheric masses or infarctions  
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what are the three questions you want to ask yourself during physical examination of a coma patient   does the patient have meningitis, are signs of a mass lesion present. is this condition a diffuse syndrome of exogenous or endogenous metabolic cause  
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__ should be carried out in all comatose patients unless a history of trauma exists   passive neck flexion  
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when the neck is passively flexed, by attempting to bring the chin within a few finger breadths of the chest, patients with irritated meninges reflexively __   flex one or both knees (Brudzinski's reflex)  
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asymmetric or reflex function of the motor system provides the clearest indication of a __   mass lesion  
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methods used to evoke a pain response from a patient   strong pressure on the supraorbital ridge or pinching of the skin on the anterior chest or inner arm  
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elicitation of a __ requires that a painful stimulus be applied to which the patient will react   motor response  
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hemispheric masses at their early stage (compromising the brain above the thalamus) produce appropriate movement of one upper extremity, that is __   toward the stimulus  
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as the mass expands to involve the thalamus, the response to pain becomes   reflex arm flexion associated with extension and internal rotation of the legs (decorticate posturing)  
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with late brain compromise at the midbrain level, the reflex posture changes in the arms such that __ at this level the asymmetry tends to be lost   both arms and legs respond by extension (decerebrate posturing)  
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with further brain compromise progression to the level of the pons __ is the most frequent finding.   no response to painful stimulation  
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in metabolic coma pupillary reactivity is lost only when __   coma is so deep the patient requires ventilitory and blood pressure support  
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with further brain compromise progression to the level of the pons pupils become __   midposition in size, and light reflex is lost, first unilaterally then bilaterally  
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the presence of inducible lateral eye movements reflects the integrity of the __   pons and midbrain  
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reflexive eye movements are brought about by __   passive head rotation to stimulate the semicircular canal input to the vestibular system (doll's eyes maneuver  
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lack of inducible lateral eye movement int he setting of preserved pupillary reactivity, is virtually diagnostic of __   drug toxicity  
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with metabolic coma of non-drug induced origin, such as organ system failure, electrolyte disorders, or osmolar disorders, reflex eye movements are   preserved  
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brainstem mass lesions are most commonly caused by   hemorrhage or infarction  
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seizures occurring in a patient with acute brain injury, or chronic brain injury often result in __   prolonged postictal coma  
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return of pupillary reactivity within 24 hours and purposeful motor movements withing the first 72 hours after cardiac arrest aqre highly correlated with __   favorable outcome  
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the slow, conjugate roving eye movements of metabolic coma cannot be imitated and therefore rule out __   psychogenic unresponsiveness  
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in patients with catatonic stupor __ administration may produce awakening   lorazepam  
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in __, patients have awakened from coma but have not regained awareness   persistent vegetative states  
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wakefulness is exhibited by __   eye opening and sleep wake cycles.  
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in __ the reticular activating system of the brain stem is intact to produce wakefulness, but the connections to the cortical mantle are interrupted, precluding awareness   persistent vegetative state  
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a vegetative state is termed persistent after __ months if the brain injury was medical   3  
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a vegetative state is termed persistent after __ months if the brain injury was traumatic   12  
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__ characterizes the irreversible cessation of brain function   brain death  
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brain death results in __, usually within days even if ventilatory support is continued.   asystole  
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__ after appropriate documentation of brain death has never been reported   recovery  
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clinical features of locked-in syndrome   eye opening, reactive pupils, volitional vertical eye movements to command, mute, quadriparesis, sleep wake cycles  
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damage to hemispheres causes   unresponsive and unreceptive to sensory stimuli including pain  
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damage to midbrain causes   unreactive pupils  
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damage to pons causes   absent reflex eye movements  
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damage to medulla causes   apnea  
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definition of coma   inability to sense or respond to external stimuli or inner needs  
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com is not a __   disease, it is an expression of an underlying pathological process  
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a high level function that permits understanding of self and environment. This function resides diffusely in the cerebral cortex.   awareness  
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a more primitive function and refers to a primitive set of responses that are contained totally within the brainstem.   arousal  
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for loss of consciousness to occur: __   either both cerebral hemispheres must be damaged or ther must be a brainstem lesion  
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causes of coma   metabolic (drug ingestion, hypoglycemia)50%, cerebral hemorrhage 20%, cerebral infarction 10%, psychiatric 2%  
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causes of sudden onset of coma   cardiac arrest, subarachnoid hemorrhage (secondary to aneurysm, brainstem infarct or hemorrhage, bicerebral hemispheric infarction  
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causes of coma onset over minutes to hours   drug overdose, hypoxia, hypoglycemia, subarachnoid hemorrhage, acute hydrocephalus, vascular malformation, meningitis and encephalitis, metabolic (uremia, hepatic failure), hypertensive encephalopathy  
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Battle's sign   retroauricular hematoma, indicates mastoid fracture  
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hemispheric or diencephalic dysfunction due to destructive lesions or metabolic abnormality.   decorticate  
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suggests upper brain disfunction   decorticate  
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arms move toward pain   decorticate  
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suggest lower brain disfunction   decerebrate  
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midbrain or upper pons dysfunction on a structural or metabolic basis.   decerebrate  
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arms move away from pain   decerebrate  
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type of breathing in bilateral hemispheric lesions. Most commonly seen in non-neurologic disorders (CHF).   cheynes-stokes  
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reactive pupils indicate that the __   midbrain is intact  
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midposition (3-5mm) nonreactive pupils indicate   midbrain damage  
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A unilaterally dilated, nonreactive pupil (a blown pupil) is a sign of __   cranial nerve III (oculomotor nerve) compression (Aneurysm, Mass Lesion).  
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A dilated nonreactive pupil may also be caused by   diabetes mellitus and some drugs (atropine, scopolamine)  
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small reactive pupils are seen in __   pontine damage (infarct or hemorrhage) or with some drug use (opiates, pilocarpine).  
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bilateral midposition unreactive pupils can be seen with   hypothermia  
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eye deviation occurs __ a unilateral hemispheric lesion   toward  
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eye deviation occurs __ from a unilateral brainstem lesion   away  
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function testing of eye movements is done by the __   the oculo-cephalic reflex (Doll's head) or oculo-vestibular reflex (ice water calorics).  
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normal oculocephalic reflex   eyes move in the direction opposite to the movement of the rotating head  
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abnormal oculocephalic reflex suggests   destructive lesion at the midbrain or pontine level  
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normal response to the oculo-vestibular reflex in a conscious patient   Tonic (sustained) deviation of the eyes toward the stimulated side, with the quick phase of nystagmus toward the opposite side  
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response of a comatose patient with an intact brainstem to the oculo-vestibular reflex   tonic deviation of the eyes will be present, but there will be no nystagmus  
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response of a comatose patient with brainstem dysfunction to the oculo-vestibular reflex   Loss of tonic deviation with stimulation of one, or both ears. If there is no tonic deviation there can be no fast response.  
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abnormal response to corneal sensation suggests a   pontine lesion  
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if a patient is comatose the first lab result should be   glucose  
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lowest possible glasgow coma score (GCS), indicating deep coma or death   3  
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GCS of __ or lower suggests coma   8  
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highest GCS indicating fully awake   15  
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__ can be present in brain death   deep tendon reflexes  
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physical exam findings in a pateint who is brain dead   no purposeful movement, They demonstrate no pupillary responses, extraocular movements (spontaneously, or in response to stimulation), corneal reflexes, spontaneous respirations or movements (spontaneous or in response to stimulation).  
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GCS, is broken up into what catagories   eye, verbal, and motor responses  
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GCS eye response: eyes open spontaneously = grade   4  
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GCS eye response: eye opening to speech (not to be confused with awakening a sleeping person) = grade   3  
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GCS eye response: eyes opening in response to pain = grade   2  
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GCS eye response: no eye opening   1  
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GCS verbal response: oriented (patient responds coherently and appropriately to questions) = grade   5  
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GCS verbal response: confused (the patient responds to questions coherently but there is some disorientation and confusion) = grade   4  
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GCS verbal response: inappropriate words (random or exclamatory articulated speech, but no conversational exchange) = grade   3  
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GCS verbal response: incomprehensible sounds (moaning but no words) = grade   2  
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GCS verbal response: no verbal response = grade   1  
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GCS motor response: obeys commands = grade   6  
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GCS motor response: localizes to pain (purposeful movements towards changing painful stimuli) = grade   5  
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GCS motor response: withdraws from pain (pull part of body away when pinched) = grade   4  
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GCS motor response: flexion in response to pain (decorticate response) = grade   3  
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GCS motor response: extension to pain (decerebrate response, adduction, internal rotation of shoulder, pronation of forearm) = grade   2  
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GCS motor response: no motor response = grade   1  
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almost all patients in coma will eventually __   wake up to some degree  
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in vegetative states the eyes may open in response to verbal stimuli and may appear to follow a light. however ther will be __   no response to visual threat  
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patients in a vegetative state do not __   discretely localize motor responses, follow commands or speak comprehensibly  
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