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Alzheimer's disease

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Detereioration of a person's intellectual funtioning; progressive and extremely debilitating

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Absence seizure

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A small seizure in which there is sudden temporary relief of consciousness lasting only a few seconds

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Acetylcholine

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A chemical substance in the body tissues that facilitate the transmission of nerve impulses from one nerve to another; also known as a neurotransmitter

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Afferent nerves

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transmitters of nerve impulses toward the CNS; also known as sensory nerves

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Agnosia

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Loss of mental ability to understand sensensory stimuli (such as sight, sound, or touch) even though the sensory organs themselves are functioning properly (e.g., the inability to recognize or interpret the images the eye is seeing is known as optic agnosia)

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Agraphia

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The inability to convert one's thoughts into writing

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Alexia

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The inability to understand written words

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Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

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A severe weakening and wasting of the involved muscle groups, usually beginning with the hands and progressing to the shoulders, upper arms, and legs. It is caused by decreased nerve innervation to the muscle groups

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Anaglasia

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Without sensitivity to pain

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Anencephaly

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An absence of the brain and spinal cord at birth, a congenital disorder

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Anesthesia

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Without feeling or sensation

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Aneurysm

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A localized dilation in the wall of an artery that expands with each pulsation of the artery; usually caused by hypertension or artherosclerosis

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Aphasia

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Inability to communicate through speech, writing, or signs because of an injury to or disease in certain areas of the brain

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Apraxia

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Inability to perform coordinated movements or use objects properly; not associated with sensory or motor impairment or paralysis

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Ataxia

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Without muscular coordination

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Aura

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The sensation an individual experiences prior to the onset of a migraine headache or an epileptic seizure. It may be a sensation of light or warmth and may precede the attack by hours or only a few seconds

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Autonomic nervous system

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The part of nervous system that regulates the involuntary vital functions of the body, such as the activitites involving the heart muscle, smooth muscles, and the glands. It has two divisions: the SNS and the PNS

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Bell's palsy

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A temporary or permanent unilateral weakness or paralysis of the muscles in the face following trauma to the face, an unknown infection, or a tumor pressing on the facial nerve rendering it paralyzed

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Brudzinkski's sign

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A positive sign of meningitis, in which there is an involuntary flexion of the arm, hip, and knee when the patient's neck is passively flexed

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Bradykinesia

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Abnormally slow movement

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Brain abscess

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A localized accumulation of pus located anywhere in the brain tissue due to an infectious process - either a primary local infection or an infection secondary to another infectious process in the body (such as bacterial endocarditis, sinusitis, otitis, or dental abscess

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Burr hole

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A hole drilled into the skull using a form of drill

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Degenerative disk

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The deterioration of the intervertebral disk, usually due to constant motion and wear on the disk

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Dementia

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A progressive irreversible mental disorder in which the person has deteriorating memory, judgement, and ability to think

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Diplopia

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Double vision; also called ambiopia

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Dyslexia

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A condition characterized by an impairment of the ability to read. Letters and words are often reversed when reading

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Dysphasia

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Difficult speech

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Electromyography

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The process of recording the electrical activity of muscle by inserting a small needle into the muscle and delivering a small current that stimulates the muscle

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Encephalitis

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The inflammation of the brain or spinal cord tissue largely caused by a virus that enters the CNS when the person experiences a viral disease such as measles or mumps or through the bite of a mosquito or tick

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Epilepsy

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A neurological condition characterized by recurrent episodes of sudden brief attacks of seizures. The seizure may vary from mild and unnoticeable to full-scale convulsive seizures

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Guillain-Barre syndrome

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Acute polyneuritis ("inflammation of many nerves") of the PNS in which the myelin sheaths on the axons are destroyed, resulting in decreased nerve impulses, loss of reflex response, and sudden muscle weakness, which usually follows a viral gastrointestinal or respiratory infection

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Gait

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The style of walking

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Huntington's Chorea

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An inherited neurological disease characterized by rapid, jerky, involuntary movements and increasing dementia due to the effects of the basal ganglia on the neurons

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Hematoma (epidural / subdural)

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Epidural hematoma is a collection of blood located above the dura mater and just below the skull; subdural hematoma is a collection of blood flow below the dura mater and above the arachnoid layer of the meninges. hemiparesis slight or partial paralysis of one half of the body

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Hemiplegia

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Paralysis of one half of the body

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Hydrocephalus

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An abnormal increase of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain that causes the ventricles of the brain to dilate, resulting in an increased head circumference in the infant with open fontanel; a congenital disorder

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Intracranial tumors

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Occurs in any structural region of the brain. They may be malignant or benign, classified as primary or secondary and are named according to the tissue from which they originate

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Kernig's sign

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A diagnostic sign for meningitis marked by the person's inability to extend the leg completely when the thigh is flexed upon the abdomen and the person is sitting or lying down

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Lethargy

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A state of being sluggish

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MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

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A noninvasive scanning procedure that provides visualization of fluid, soft tissue, and bony structures without the use of radiation

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Meningitis

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A serious bacterial infection of the meninges (the covering of the brain and spinal cord) that can have residual debilitating effects or even a fatal outcome if not diagnosed and treated promptly with appropriate antibiotic therapy

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Multiple sclerosis (MS)

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A degenerative inflammatory disease of the CNS attacking the myelin sheath in the spinal cord and brain, leaving it sclerosed (hardened) or scarred and interrupting the flow of nerve impulses

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Myasthenia gravis

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A chronic progressive neuromuscular disorder causing severe skeletal muscle weakness (without atrophy) and fatigue, which occurs at different levels of severity

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Narcolepsy

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Uncontrolled, sudden attacks of sleep

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Neuralgia

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Severe sharp, spasmlike pain that extends along the course of one or more nerves

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Neuritis

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Inflammation of a nerve

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Neuroglia

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The supporting tissue of the nervous system

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Neurology

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The study of the nervous system and its disorders

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Quadriplegia

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Paralysis of all 4 extremities and the trunk of the body; caused by injury to the spinal cord at the level of the cervical vertebrae

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Romberg test

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Used to evaluate cerebellar function and balance

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Rhuzotomy

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The surgical resection of a spinal nerve root (a procedure performed to relieve pain); also called radiculotomy

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sciatica

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inflammation of the sciatic nerve; characterized by pain along the course of the nerve, radiating through the thigh and down the back of the leg

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spina bifida cystica

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a congenital defect of the CNS in which the back portion of one or more vertebrae is not closed normally and a cyst protrudes through the opening

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Tonic-clonic seizure

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A seizure characterized by the presence of muscle contraction or tension followed by relaxation, creating a "jerking" movement of the body

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Stupor

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A state of lethargy. The person is unresponsive and seems unaware of their surroundings

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Syncope

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Fainting

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Sympathomimetic

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Copying or producing the same effects as those of the sympathetic nerves; to mimic sympathetic nerves

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