Brain Injury and Neuropsychiatry

Question 1

what is neuropsychiatry?

Answer 1

Neuropsychiatry is a medical subspecialty that combines aspects of neurology and psychiatry tp address the relationship between brain function and behaviour.
It focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and understanding of mental disorders that are associated with neurological conditions.

Question 2

List some neurological conditions with psychiatric symptoms

Answer 2

• stroke
• traumatic brain injury (highest incidence and prevalence)
• epilepsy (e.g. psychosis or mood changes)
• multiple sclerosis
• parkinsons disease
• huntingtons disease

Question 3

how does the DSM-5 define traumatic brain injury (TBI)

Answer 3

TBI is defined as brain trauma with specific characteristics that include at least one of the following: loss of consciousness, posttraumatic amnesia, disorientation and confusion, or, in more severe cases, neurologicals signs (e.g., positive neuroimaging, a new onset of seizures or a marked worsening of pre-existing seizures, visual field cuts, anosmia, hemiparesis).
- To be attributable to TBI, a neurocognitive disorder must present either immediately after the injury or immediately after the individual recovers consciousness after the injury and persist past the acute post-injury period.

Question 4

what score system remains the main instrument for classifying the severity of TBI?

Answer 4

Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)

Question 5

what are some biomarkers for predicting brain injury?

Answer 5

• Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)
• Ubiquitin Carboxy-terminal Hydrolase L1 (UCH-L1)
• NfL