Neurological Disorders Flashcards
Flaccid paralysis is often associated with?
Cranial or spinal nerve lesions and causes loss of muscle tone.
What are underwriting consideration for paralysis or neuropathies?
- age at onset
- underlying cause
- acute/chronic, remitting/recurring, stable or progressive
- impact on quality of life
- degree to which it affects physiologic functions
What is cerebral palsy?
Describes a group of disorders presenting either at birth or in early infancy.
Brain damage during gestation, at birth or shortly afterwards.
What are the three major subgroups of cerebral palsy?
- Dyskinesia syndrome
- Spastic
- Ataxic
Dyskinesia syndrome are involuntary movements creating abnormal posture/facial grimaces. What are the three types of movement?
- athetoid : slow smooth writhing of distal movement
- chorea : irregular, unpredictable contraction of muscle
- dystonia : repetitive, patterned
Underwriting consideration on cerebral palsy?
- extent and severity of DI
- degree of intellectual impairment
- seizures
- ability to live independently
- independent mobility or need for assistive device
Peripheral neuropathy is caused by what?
Damage to the peripheral nervous systems: communicating network between the central nervous system.
What are the signs of peripheral neuropathy?
- neuropathic symptoms
- muscle weakness
- organ or gland dysfunction
- changes on EMG
What are type of mononeurpathies?
Bell’s Palsy, Carpel Tunnel, thoracic outlet syndrome, mononeuritis multiplex.
Autonomic neuropathy is peripheral nerve dysfunction that affects nerves involved in regulating involuntary muscle in?
- maintaining heart rate
- BP
- gastric motility
- perspiration
- pupil dilation
- glandular function
Common disease-related causes of peripheral neuropathy are?
- metabolic disorder
- generalized vascular disease
- hereditary disease
- toxicity
- connective tissue and chronic inflammatory disorder
- Vitamin deficiency
- infection
- paraneoplastic syndromes
What is the most effective treatment for neuropathy?
Control of underlying disease, medication like gabapentin/lyrica.
Diabetic neuropathy is damage to sensory nerve fibers or autonomic nerves due to prolonged periods of hyperglycemia. Onset is gradual with damage resulting in?
- loss vibratory sensation and proprioception
- impaired sensation to pain and temperature
What is chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy?
Immune-mediated disorder, chronic counterpart of Guillain-Barré syndrome - also called relapsing polyneuropathy
Signs and symptoms of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy?
- symmetric, proximal and distal motor and/or sensory muscle dysfunction lasting for at least 8 weeks.
- diminshed tendon reflexes
- alterations in proprioception
What is multifocal motor neuropathy?
Immune-mediated, demyelinating neuropathy. Slowly progressive muscle weakness, fasciculation and cramping of muscles.
What are the five groups of dementia?
- neurodegenerative dementia
- vascular disease
- encephalopathy
- non-metabolic disorder
- others like Huntington/alcohol abuse
No specific test for diagnosis of early onset dementia, what are common investigation?
- physical and neurological examination
- cognitive testing
- MRI scanning
- Lab test
What two medications can be used to alleviate symptoms?
Cholinesterase inhibitors and N-methyl D-Aspartate
What are the four signs of developping Huntington disease?
- change in usual behavior
- unusual jerky/fidgety movement
- unsteadiness of the hands and feet
- increasing inability to sustain certain simple voluntary act
Parkinson’s disease is a chronic progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by which four symptoms?
- tremor at rest
- muscle stiffness
- bradykinesia
- postural instability
What is the principal treatment for Parkinson’s disease?
Levodopa L-dopa
What are the three surgical techniques for Parkinsons?
Lesining, deep brain stimulation and implation of fetal tissue.
