Neurological structure and Function Flashcards
What is the neuromuscular junction? and what chemical is involved?
The neuromuscular junction is a chemical synapse between a motor neurone and a muscle fibre. The chemical released is acetylcholine.
What is the difference between retrograde and anterograde amnesia?
Retrograde is the inability to recall memories that occurred prior to the brain damage.
Anterograde is the inability to form new memories after the injury to the brain.
What is the difference between declarative and procedural memory?
Declarative memory a type of long term memory that is the conscious recall of facts.
Procedural memory is also long term but is the unconscious recall of learning movements.
What area’s of the brain are implicated in Procedural memory?
prefrontal cortex, parietal lobe and cerebellum
Name the structures of the limbic system?
HATCH Hypothalamus Amygdala - emotion and fear Thalamus Cingulate Gyrus Hippocampus - memory
What is a reflex arc?
A neural circuit at the level of the spinal cord that allows a sensory neuron to connect to a motor neuron via an interneuron causing it to contract without cortical processing. It is a protective mechanism that allows us to quickly withdraw from painful or dangerous stimuli.
Parkinsons Disease Symptoms?
shuffling gait
tremor more prominent when stressed
bradykinesia
postural changes
Mechanism of Parkinsons?
Movement disorder due to the depletion of dopamine producing neurons in the substation Nigra of the basal ganglia. The decrease in dopamine leads to deficits in speed and quality of movement.
Coronary Artery Disease ?
Atherosclerosis occurs when cholesterol, fat and calcium deposits build up in the arteries and block the blood supply to the heart. Over time this leads to a hardening and narrowing of the blood vessels reducing the rate of blood flow to the heart.
Diabetes Mellitus?
Metabolic condition characterised by the pancreas’s inability to produce insulin. Insulin transports glucose to cells in the body to use for growth and energy, lack of insulin causes glucose to build up in the blood and also causes the body to breakdown fats and lipids to use for energy. This produces ketones as a byproduct a buildup of which is potentially fatal.
Osteoarthritis?
Due to a break down and eventual loss of cartilage that lets our joints glide across each other during movement. This causes friction of bones in the joint and this results in inflammation, pain and redness in the joint.
Definition of Spasticity?
A motor disorder that causes increased muscle tone with exaggerated tendon jerks as a result of the hyper excitability of the stretch reflex.
What is Neuroplasticity?
The brains ability to change and build new, additional neurons and synapses and therefore stregthen connections between neurons.
Principals of Neuroplasticity?
- repetition
- Massed practice
-foccussed attention - targeted feedback
- graded but challenging task
- variation in task and practice conditions
Ability of the client to understand the process.
What is the Optic Chiasm?
The structure located in the base of the brain where the right and left optic nerves converge and partially cross to form optic tracts. Functional implications for visual field loss.
