Chapter 16: Neurological Disorders Flashcards by Ellie Mondok

Tumor

A mass of cells whose growth is uncontrolled and that serves no useful function

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Encapsulated tumors are ______

benign

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Non-encapsulated tumors are _____

malignant

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The major distinction between malignancy and benignancy is whether the tumor is ____________.

encapsulated

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Metastases

Tumor spreads to another location via bloodstream

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Tumors damage brain tissue by two means:

Compression
Infiltration

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True or false: ANY tumor (malignant or benign) can produce neurological symptoms and threaten the patient’s life

True, even a benign tumor occupies space and thus pushes against the brain (compression)

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True or false: Neurons can become cancerous

FALSE; neuron cells can’t divide…so…

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Only the _____ cells of the brain can become cancerous

glial

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Explain compression of a tumor

The tumor grows, occupies space, and pushes against the brain

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Explain infiltration of a tumor

Invades surrounding area and destroys the cells in its path

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Treatments for tumors:

Radiation, neurosurgery, chemotherapy, Bevacizumab drug

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The Bevacizumab drug inhibits _________.

Angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels

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What is a seizure?

A period of sudden, excessive activity of neurons in the brain

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If neurons in the motor system are involved, a seizure can cause a _________

Convulsion

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Nowadays, it is called ___________, not epilepsy.

Seizure disorder

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_______ seizures have a definite focus or source of irritation (such as scar tissue)

Partial

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_________ seizures are widespread, involving most of the brain

Generalized

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Simple partial seizures cause _________

changes in consciousness

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Complex partial seizures cause ______

loss of consciousness

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The most severe form of seizure is ______ ___ _______

Grand mal seizure

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Tell me about the grand mal seizure

Generalized, convulsions, aura, AKA tonic-clonic,

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Types of generalized seizures:

Grand Mal
Petit mal
Atonic

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Atonic seizures involve _______ and _____.

Loss of muscle tone; temporary paralysis

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During the tonic/clonic phase of a grand mal seizure, all the person's muscles contract forcefully and this rigid posture is held for about 15 seconds.

Tonic

During the tonic/clonic phase of a grand mal seizure, the muscles begin trembling and jerking convulsively, eyes rolls, facial muscles contract, and tongue may be bitten.

Clonic

Hemorrhagic strokes are caused by ______

bleeding in the brain

Ischemic strokes are caused by ______

obstructions of the flow of blood

What is thrombus?

A blood clot in the blood vessels

Two ways that blood can be obstructed and cause an ischemic stroke

Thrombus Embolus

What is an embolus?

A tiny piece of material that breaks off and is carried through the bloodstream until it reaches an alley too small to pass through

What is an infarct?

Neurons begin to die due to a lack of blood flow

An immediate cause of neuron death is excessive amounts of _______

glutamate

Too much _____ will cause neurons to swell and the microglia will destroy them

sodium

Treatments for cerebrovascular accidents

Medication to reduce blood pressure (hemorrhagic stroke) Brain surgery Dissolve or physically remove the blood clot Anticoagulant drugs (tPA, Desmoteplase) Antibiotics

Ways to minimize brain damage caused by strokes:

Clot-dissolving drugs Remove cerebral occlusions with stent, suction, or corkscrew

Atherosclerosis

Process in which the linings of arteries develop a layer of plaque

Atherosclerosis can lead to ______ or ______

heart attacks; ischemic strokes

True or false: There is no healing after a stroke.

False! Drugs, therapy, exercise, sensory stimulation, etc. can all help stroke patients

TBI stands for ______

traumatic brain injury...dun dun DUNNN

Open-head injury occur when _______

objects fracture the skull and wound the brain

Example of an open-head injury

Gunshot

Closed-head injuries occur when

an object hits your head but do not involve penetration of the brain

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) produces neurodegeneration due to ________ ____ _____

repeated head trauma

CTE symptoms

Mood and cognitive impairment Abnormal tau protein buildup Reduced brain volume + enlarged ventricles

Immediate, primary treatments for TBI typically include reducing _______ and ______ as well as ensuring adequate blood flow to the injured region

Swelling; intracranial pressure

Fatal contagious brain disease that gives the brain a spongelike appearance

TSE (transmissible spongiform encephalopathy)

TSE is caused by simple proteins called _______ found in the membrane of neurons

prions

How is TSE caused?

Accumulation of misfolded, abnormal prions proteins signals apoptosis

True or false: TSE may be genetic, but most cases are sporadic.

True

Example of a contagious degenerative disorder

TSE

Parkinson's Disease is degeneration of the ____________

nigrostriatal system

Symptoms of Parkinson's

muscular rigidity Slowness of movement Resting tremor Postural instability

In Parkinson's, although there is a near-disappearance of nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons, the surviving dopaminergic neurons show _______

Lewy bodies

Is Parkinson's genetic or sporadic?

Sporadic

Parkinson's is caused by a gene mutation of chromosome _, which produces an abnormal _________ and _______, and chromosome _, which produces ______

4; alpha-synuclein; toxic gain of function 6; parkin

Huntington's Disease is an inherited disorder that causes degeneration of the _______, especially the ____.

basal ganglia; putamen

Huntington's Disease involves the death of excitatory/inhibitory neurons in the putamen.

inhibitory

Huntington's Disease is a hereditary disorder caused by a dominant gene on chromosome _

Huntington's Disease produces an abnormally folded protein called _____

Huntington

In Huntington's disease, a sequence of bases _ _ _ abounds

CAG

Treatments for Huntington's Disease includes:

nothing at the moment. : (

ALS attacks the _____ ___ and _______

spinal cord; cranial nerve motor neurons

Symptoms of ALS:

Spasticity, exaggerated stretch reflexes, progressive weakness, muscular atrophy, paralysis

True or false: ALS is sporadic

True

Main cause of ALS:

Abnormality in RNA editing, which produces too many Ca ions, destroying the cells via apoptosis

_____ is an autoimmune demyelinating disease.

MS (multiple sclerosis)

Progressive MS

Slowly gets worse and worse

Relapse-remit MS

Symptoms increase and decrease

Men/women are diagnosed with MS more frequently

Women

MS may come from a virus, namely ___

Mono

____ disease is a progressive loss of memory and other cognitive functions caused by amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.

Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's memory loss is similar to anterograde/retrograde amnesia

retrograde

Causes of Alzheimer's Disease:

May be hereditary Mutations

Risk factors of Alzheimer's Disease:

TBI, obesity, hypertension, high cholesterol levels, diabetes, lower levels of formal education

Treatment for Alzheimer's Disease:

AChE inhibitors; NMDA receptor antagonist (don't really help much)

________ Syndrome is characterized by symptoms of anterograde amnesia caused mostly by environmental factors, such as alcohol

Korsakoff's

Korsakoff's Syndrome is caused by a __ deficiency, which produces brain damage

thiamine (B1)

Encephalitis infects the ____

entire brain...

Meningitis infects the ____

Meninges

Causes of encephalitis

Herpes simplex, polio, rabies, HIV

Herpes simplex virus attacks the _____ and ____ lobes

frontal; temporal

Meningitis is caused by _____ and ____

viruses; bacteria

Symptoms of meningitis:

headache, stiff neck, convulsions, confusion, loss of consciousness