Cerebellar Exam Flashcards
What is included in general inspection in cerebellar examination?
Look around bed
Patients posture
What should be noted around the bed in cerebellar exam?
Any mobility aids, e.g. wheelchair, walking stick
What should be noted regarded the patient’s posture in cerebellar examination?
Any truncal ataxia
What can the components of cerebellar examination be broadly divided into?
- Gait
- Head
- Arms
- Legs
What are the components to assessing a patients gait in cerebellar exam?
- Stance
- Stability
- Tandem (heel toe walking)
- Romberg’s test
Why is it important to note patients stance in cerebellar exam?
Broad-based gait is noted in cerebellar disease
What might happen to stability of gait in cerebellar disease?
Can be staggering, often slow and unsteady - similar to drunk person walking
What might happen to gait in unilateral cerebellar disease?
May veer towards side of lesion
Why is heel toe walking a good test for cerebellar dysfunction?
Very sensitive test and will exaggerate any unsteadiness
What structure is the heel-toe test particularly sensitive at assessing the function of?
Cerebellar vermis
How is Romberg’s test done?
Ask the patient to put their feet together, keep their hands by their side and close their eyes (be ready to support them in case they are unsteady)
What is Romberg’s test a test of?
Proprioception (not cerebellar disease)
Is swaying with correction on Romberg’s test a positive result for cerebellar disease?
No (although may indicate cerebellar disease
What is an abnormal Romberg’s test?
Falling without correction
What does a positive Romberg’s test indicate?
Unsteadiness is due to sensory ataxia from a lack of proprioception rather than cerebellar ataxia
What are the components to ‘head’ assessment in cerebellar exam?
- Speech
- Nystagmus
What speech abnormality is characteristic of cerebellar dysfunction?
Slurred, staccato speech
Staccato means ‘performed with each note sharply detached or separated from the others.’
What phrases should you use to assess if their speech is slurred?
- British constitution
- Baby hippopotamus
What is this?
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/brainscape-prod/system/cm/326/513/435/q_image_thumb.gif?1567104750)
Nystagmus