Basics of Neuro Exam Flashcards
What structures of the CNS lie in the posterior fossa?
Brainstem and cerebellum
Basal ganglia - CNS or PNS?
CNS
Spinal cord - CNS or PNS?
CNS
Signs/symptoms on the same side as the involved CNS structure
Ipsilateral
Signs/symptoms on the opposite side as the involved CNS structure?
Contralateral
Motor or upper motor neurons are called ______ tracts. What two structures do they cross?
Corticospinal tracts
Medullary pyramidal decussation
Foramen magnum
What sensory system carries proprioception/fine touch? What structure does it cross?
Dorsal column System
Foramen magnum
What sensory system carries pain/thermal sensation? What structure does it cross?
Spinothalamic system
Level of entry in spinal cord
What are the three long tracts?
Corticospinal, dorsal column, spinothalamic
Disease at a spinal segment - local (cervical, thoracic, lumbar, or sacral)
Segmental disease
What symptoms result from segmental disease?
Weakness and reflex changes below the level of the lesion due to interruption of descending corticospinal tracts
Loss of sensation below level of lesion due to interruption of ascending dorsal column and spinothalamic tracts
Preferentially impacts long tracts, combo of involved tracts can be relatively specific for selected diseases
Selective tract disease
Posterior fossa structures reside between the ____ and ____
foramen magnum and tentorium
Injury to brainstem:
Cranial nerves - ?
Long tracts - ?
(ipsilateral or contralateral symptoms)
Other injury:
CN’s - ipsilateral
LT’s - contralateral (b/c they have decussated/crossed)
Disturbances of conjugate gaze and/or pupils, disturbances of balance
Injury to cerebellum itself: contralateral or ipsilateral symptoms?
Ipsilateral
What are basal ganglia?
Deep nuclei in the upper brainstem and deep cerebral hemispheres
Injury to basal ganglia: contralateral or ipsilateral?
What are the prime manifestations?
Contralateral
Movement disorders - Parkinson’s, Huntington’s
What are higher cortical functions?
Language, complex actions, complex sensory interpretation
Disturbance of language
Aphasia
Inability to execute complex motor tasks
Apraxia
Inability to interpret complex sensory info - like recognizing faces
Agnosia
What cerebral hemisphere is language dominant? (for most people)
Left
Injury to cerebral hemispheres: contralateral or ipsilateral?
Contralateral - b/c long tracts plug into hemispheres
Visual pathways run from ____ to ___, so lesions produce very specific visual field findings.
Retina to occipital cortex
