Musculoskeletal,Nervous and Cancer

Question 1

Marfan’s

Answer 1

• dysfunction of the gene that codes for fibrillin
• Autosomal Dominant
• Connective tissue in tendons, heart valves and blood vessels

**Abe Lincoln

Question 2

Osteoporosis

Answer 2

• A metabolic bone disease where bone density is reduced.
• It produces porous bone that is abnormally fragile and easy to fracture
• Osteoblasts are not keeping up with bone breakdown
• Weight-bearing bones are most susceptible (hips, vertebrae)
• Risk factors:Low bone mass, low calcium intake, vitamin D deficiency, small frame, sedentary lifestyle, family history, cigarette smoking, postmenopausal, excessive alcohol use, hysterectomy, Caucasian or Asian, amenorrhea
• Symptoms are mild: height loss, ease of fracture, Kyphosis (dowager’s hump)
• Diagnosis: patient history, bone density testing -Treatments include medications to enhance calcium uptake by bones

Question 3

Multiple Sclerosis

Answer 3

• A chronic, progressive autoimmune disorder causing myelin degeneration
• Remissions and exacerbations with varying progression
• Possible causes: viruses or immunologic reactions to a virus, bacteria, trauma, autoimmunity, and heredity
• More prevalent in Caucasians, and those in temperate climates
• Symptoms:muscle impairment, loss of balance and poor coordination, numbness, and tingling sensations,difficulty in speaking clearly, and urinary bladder dysfunction,double vision with lesions to the optic nerve may lead to blindness,nystagmus
• Treatment:currently there is no cure

Question 4

Myasthenia Gravis

Answer 4

• Disorder of NMJ
• Autoimmune disease: Gradual destruction of acetylcholine receptors
• Gradual development of weakness: From proximal to distal portions of body
• Treatment: immunosuppression, anticholinesterase drugs

“He has no muscles (because acetylocholine receptors are destryoed) so he can’t be MJ (Michael Jordan), so he has to be MG (Myasthenia Gravis)”

Question 5

Muscular Dystrophy

Answer 5

• Genetic disorder with a defect in the dystrophin protein that links sarcomeres to the muscle membrane(Sex-linked disorder)
• Signs appear at age 3-5
• Muscle fibers die and are replaced by fat and connective tissue, skeletal muscle weakness, calf muscles enlarge because of fat deposition
• Diagnosis: Electromyography, which shows weak muscle contractions ,biopsy of muscle shows abnormal muscle fibers
• Treatment: physical and occupational therapy, exercise, and use of orthopedic appliances. There is no cure.

Question 6

Transient Ischemic Attacks

Answer 6

• Caused by brief but critical periods of reduced blood flow in a cerebral artery
• Manifestation is often abrupt and can include visual disturbances, transient hemiparesis (muscular weakness on one side), or sensory loss on one side, lips and tongue may become numb, causing slurred speech

**precursor to stroke

Question 7

Stroke

Answer 7

• Cerebrovascular accident/ stroke/ brain attack
• Infarct of brain tissue
• Causes: hemorrhage,clot
• Symptoms depend on area of brain damaged

Question 8

Parkinson’s Disease

Answer 8

• Movement disorder that results from degeneration of nerve cells in the basal ganglia
• Dopamine- affected neurotransmitter (“no dope in the Park”)
• Symptoms: tremors, rigidity, loss of reflexes, mask-like facial expression, shuffling gait

Question 9

ALS (Lou Gehrig’s)

Answer 9

• Also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease; a chronic, terminal, neurological disease in which there is a progressive loss of motor neurons (“can’t play baseball anymore”)
• Cause:unknown
• Disturbances in motility and atrophy of muscles of the hands, forearms, and legs because of degeneration of neurons in the ventral horn of the spinal cord
• Cranial nerves, particularly the hypoglossal, trigeminal, and facial nerves, which impair muscles of the mouth and throat, are affected (swallowing and tongue movements are affected, and speech becomes difficult or impossible)
• ALS occurs late in life, most commonly in the 50s and 60s, and is slightly more common in men than in women
• Treatment: Requires early education of the patient and the patient’s family so that a proper management system may be provided to anticipate and prevent certain hazards, prevention of upper airway obstruction and aspiration
• Death usually occurs within 3 to 4 years after onset of symptoms and generally results from pulmonary failure.

Question 10

Skin Cancer

Answer 10

• Risk factors: fair skin, sun exposure
• Designated by type of cell forming the cancer:
• Basal cell carcinoma: from the basal cell layer; most common; slow grown; surgery, chemotherapy and radiation
• Squamous cell carcinoma: from squamous keratinocytes,grows and infiltrates rapids, crusted nodule that ulcerates and bleeds
• Malignant melanoma: from melanocytes; appearance: multicolored lesion with irregular border; metastasize quickly (poor prognosis), additional radiation and chemo provide 5 year survival rate of

Question 11

Colon Cancer Stomach Cancer Liver Cancer Pancreatic Cancer

Answer 11

Question 12

Leukemia

Answer 12

• Group of neoplastic disorders involving white blood cells
• Uncontrollable production in bone or lymph nodes
• One or more types of leukocytes are undifferentiated, immature, and nonfunctiona
• Large numbers released into general circulation
• Infiltrate lymph nodes, spleen, liver, brain, other organs
• Acute: high proportion of i_mmature cells_; more common in children
• Chronic: higher proportion of m_ature cells_, so signs are less obvious,more common in adults

Question 13

Wilm’s Tumor

Answer 13

-A malignant tumor of the kidney pelvis that develops in very young children (1 in 10,000)

–most common childhood tumor

-Signs and symptoms: mass growth, hematuria, pain, vomiting, and hypertension