Head Injury

Question 1

What explains the relationship between intracranial content + intracranial pressure?

Answer 1

Munro-Kelly doctrine

Question 2

What is usually in intercranial volume?

Answer 2

brain
CSF
blood

Question 3

Where may CSF go to due to increased ICP?

Answer 3

spine

Question 4

Where may venous blood go due to increased ICP?

Answer 4

circulation

Question 5

What happens as ICP increases?

Answer 5

effective perfusion pressure of brain (cerebral perfusion pressure CPP) decreases

Question 6

What shows evidence that herniation also damages brainstem?

Answer 6

Duret haemorrhages

Question 7

What happens after traumatic brain injury?

Answer 7

Axons separate and retraction balls seen
Neurons undergo apoptosis
Injured cells, having lost their energy and iron metabolism swell - cytotoxic oedema

Question 8

What is neuroprotection?

Answer 8

Therapy aimed at preventing neuronal cell death after injury with the effect of improving outcome

Question 9

What is brain repair?

Answer 9

Mechanism for generation of new neurons and growth of new axons

Question 10

What does coma do to respiration?

Answer 10

depresses cough, gag and swallow
Slows ventilation (CO2 rises)

Question 11

What does coma do to circulation?

Answer 11

decreases BP

adequate perfusion of oxygenated blood vital