Chapter 28 Head and Spine Injuries

Question 1

Anterograde (Posttraumatic) Amnesia

Answer 1

Inability to remember events after an injury.

Question 2

Axial Loading Injuries

Answer 2

injuries in which load is applied along the vertical or longitudinal axis of the spin, which results in load being transmitted along the entire length of the vertebral column; for example, falling from a height and landing on the feet in an upright position.

Question 3

Basilar Skull Fracture

Answer 3

usually occur following diffuse impact to the head; generally result from extension of a linear fracture to the base of the skull and can be difficult to diagnose without a radiograph.

Question 4

Battle Sign

Answer 4

Bruising behind the ear over the mastoid process that may indicate a skull fracture.

Question 5

Cerebral Edema

Answer 5

swelling of the brain

Question 6

Closed Head Injury

Answer 6

injury in which the brain has been injuries but the skin has not been broken and there is no obvious bleeding.

Question 7

Concussion

Answer 7

temporary loss or alteration of part or all of the brain’s abilities to function without actual physical damage to the brain.

Question 8

Coup- Countercoup Injury

Answer 8

dual impacting of the brain into the skull; coup injury occurs at the point of impact; countercoup injury occurs on the opposite side of the impact, as the brain rebounds.

Question 9

Epidual Hematoma

Answer 9

an accumulation of blood between the skull and the dura mater.

Question 10

Eye’s Forward Position

Answer 10

head position in which the patient’s eyes are looking straight ahead and the head and the head and torso are in line.

Question 11

Four-Person Log Roll

Answer 11

the recommend procedure for moving a patient with a suspected spinal injury from the ground to a long board or other spinal immobilization device.

Question 12

Intervertebral Disk

Answer 12

the cushion that lies between two vertebrae.

Question 13

Interacerebal Hematoma

Answer 13

bleeding within the brain tissue itself; also called Intraparenchymal Hematoma

Question 14

Intracranial Pressure (ICP)

Answer 14

the pressure within the cranial vault

Question 15

Linear Skull Fracture

Answer 15

account for 80% of skull fractures; also referred to as non-displaced skull fracture; commonly occur in the temporal-parietal region of the skull; not associated with deformities to the skull.

Question 16

Meninges

Answer 16

three distinct layers of tissue that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord within the skull and spinal canal.

Question 17

Open Head Injury

Answer 17

injury to the head often caused by a penetrating object in which there may be bleeding and exposed brain tissue.

Question 18

Primary (Direct) Injury

Answer 18

an injury to the brain and its associated structures that is a direct result of impact to the head.

Question 19

Raccoon Eyes

Answer 19

bruising under the eyes that may indicate a skull fracture.

Question 20

Retrograde Amnesia

Answer 20

the inability to remember events leading up to a head injury.

Question 21

Secondary (Indirect) Injury

Answer 21

the after effects of the primary; includes abnormal process such as cerebral edema, increased intracranial pressure, cerebral ischemia and hypoxia, and infection; onset is often delayed following the primary brain injury.

Question 22

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Answer 22

bleeding into the subarachnoid space, where the cerebrospinal fluid circulates.

Question 23

Subdural Hematoma

Answer 23

an accumulation of blood beneath the dura mater but outside the brain.

Question 24

Traumatic Brian Injury (TBI)

Answer 24

traumatic insult to the brian capable of producing physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and vocational changes.

Question 25

Voluntary Activities

Answer 25

actions that we consciously preform, in which sensory input or conscious thought determines a specific muscular activity.