Neurological Assessment

Question 1

Abstract Reasoning

Answer 1

involves flexible thinking, creativity, judgment, and logical problem solving

Question 2

Agnosia

Answer 2

inability to interpret sensations and hence to recognize things, typically as a result of brain damage

Question 3

Agraphia

Answer 3

a cerebral disorder characterized by total or partial inability to write

Question 4

Analgesia

Answer 4

the inability to feel pain

Question 5

Apraxia

Answer 5

inability to perform particular purposive actions, as a result of brain damage

Question 6

Ataxia

Answer 6

the loss of full control of bodily movements

Question 7

Attention

Answer 7

the ability to focus selectively on a selected stimulus, sustaining that focus and shifting it at will. The ability to concentrate.

Question 8

Coma

Answer 8

a state of deep unconsciousness that lasts for a prolonged or indefinite period, caused especially by severe injury or illness

Question 9

Consciousness

Answer 9

the state of being awake and aware of one’s surroundings

Question 10

Conjugate Gaze

Answer 10

the motion of both eyes in the same direction at the same time, and conjugate gaze palsy refers to an impairment of this function

Question 11

Corneal Reflex

Answer 11

an involuntary blinking of the eyelids elicited by stimulation of the cornea (such as by touching or by a foreign body), or bright light, though could result from any peripheral stimulus

Question 12

Decerebrate Rigidity

Answer 12

a postural change that occurs in some comatose patients, consisting of episodes of opisthotonos, rigid extension of the limbs, internal rotation of the upper extremities, and marked plantar flexion of the feet; produced by a variety of metabolic and structural brain disorders

Question 13

Decorticate Rigidity

Answer 13

a unilateral or bilateral postural change, consisting of the upper extremities flexed and adducted and the lower extremities in rigid extension; due to structural lesions of the thalamus, internal capsule, or cerebral white matter

Question 14

Dermatome

Answer 14

the lateral wall of each somite in a vertebrate embryo, giving rise to the connective tissue of the skin

Question 15

Dysarthria

Answer 15

difficult or unclear articulation of speech that is otherwise linguistically normal

Question 16

Dysphonia

Answer 16

difficulty in speaking due to a physical disorder of the mouth, tongue, throat, or vocal cords

Question 17

Fasciculation

Answer 17

a brief, spontaneous contraction affecting a small number of muscle fibers, often causing a flicker of movement under the skin. It can be a symptom of disease of the motor neurons

Question 18

Graphesthesia

Answer 18

the ability to recognize writing on the skin purely by the sensation of touch

Question 19

Hemianopsia

Answer 19

blindness over half the field of vision

Question 20

Hemiplegia

Answer 20

paralysis of one side of the body

Question 21

Lower Motor Neuron

Answer 21

a motor neuron whose cell body is located in the brainstem or the spinal cord and whose axons innervate skeletal muscle fibers

Question 22

Myoclonus

Answer 22

spasmodic jerky contraction of groups of muscles

Question 23

Nuchal Rigidity

Answer 23

impaired neck flexion resulting from muscle spasm (not actual rigidity) of the extensor muscles of the neck; usually attributed to meningeal irritation

Question 24

Orientation

Answer 24

awareness of one’s environment with reference to time, place, and people

Question 25

Paralysis

Answer 25

the loss of the ability to move (and sometimes to feel anything) in part or most of the body, typically as a result of illness, poison, or injury

Question 26

Paraplegia

Answer 26

paralysis of the legs and lower body, typically caused by spinal injury or disease

Question 27

Paresthesia

Answer 27

an abnormal sensation, typically tingling or pricking (“pins and needles”), caused chiefly by pressure on or damage to peripheral nerves

Question 28

Perceptions

Answer 28

the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses

Question 29

Point Localization

Answer 29

the capacity to find a point on the skin that has been touched

Question 30

Proprioception

Answer 30

perception of stimuli relating to position, posture, equilibrium, or internal condition

Question 31

Romberg Test

Answer 31

a test of the body’s sense of positioning (proprioception), which requires healthy functioning of the dorsal columns of the spinal cord. The Romberg test is used to investigate the cause of loss of motor coordination (ataxia)

Question 32

Spasticity

Answer 32

increased muscle tone, or stiffness, which leads to uncontrolled, awkward movements

Question 33

Stereognosis

Answer 33

the mental perception of depth or three-dimensionality by the senses, usually in reference to the ability to perceive the form of solid objects by touch

Question 34

Thought Content

Answer 34

the patient’s delusions, overvalued ideas, obsessions, phobias, and preoccupations

Question 35

Thought Process

Answer 35

the quantity, tempo, and form of thought

Question 36

Tic

Answer 36

a habitual spasmodic contraction of the muscles, most often in the face

Question 37

Tremor

Answer 37

an involuntary quivering movement

Question 38

Two-Point Discrimination

Answer 38

the ability to discern that two nearby objects touching the skin are truly two distinct points, not one

Question 39

Upper Motor Neuron

Answer 39

motor neurons that originate in the motor region of the cerebral cortex or the brain stem and carry motor information down to the lower motor neurons