Neurological System & Emergencies Flashcards
What does the Autonomic nervous system (ANS) control?
Involuntary activities
Name the two parts of the ANS
Sympathetic & Parasympathetic
Define
F.A.S.T
stroke
Facial droop (Dysphasia), Arm drift, Slurred speech, transport or time they were last okay
The brainstem controls what functions?
Breathing, blood pressure, swallowing, pupil construction
The cerebellum controls what?
Muscle and body coordination
The front of the cerebrum controls ___
Emotion & thought
The middle of the cerebrum controls what?
Sensation and movement
The back of the cerebrum processes what?
Sight
How many cranium nerves do we have?
12
What causes a tension headache?
Muscle contractions in the head and neck
How is the pain associated with a tension headache described?
Squeezing,dull, or as an ache
What causes migraine headaches?
Changes in the blood vessels size in the base of the brain
How is the pain associated with a migraine headache described?
Pounding, throbbing, pulsating
Define
CVA
Cerebrovascular accident also known as a stroke
What is a stroke?
interruption of blood flow to an area within the brain that results in loss of brain fuction
What is the diffrence between thrombosis and embolus?
Thrombosis forms at the site of blockage
Embolus forms in a remote are amd travels to the site of the blockage
~87% of stokes are _____
ischemic stroke
due to a clot
Define
Aneurysm
swelling or enlargement of the wall of an artery resulting from a defect or weaking of the arterial wall
define
Transient ischemic attack (TIA)
warning sign of a stroke
stroke symptoms resolve on their own within 24hrs
signs & symptoms
Stroke
- Facial drooping
- sudden weakness or numbness of one side of the body
- ataxia (lack of muscle coordination
- sudden vision loss, blurred, or double vision in one eye
- difficulty swallowing
- Aphasia
- Dysarthria
Define
Aphasia
Difficulty expressing thoughts or inability to use the right
words (expressive aphasia) or difficulty understanding spoken
words (receptive aphasia)
Define
Dysarthria
Slurred speech
Define
Postictal State
The period following a seizure that lasts between 5
and 30 minutes, characterized by labored respirations and some
degree of altered mental status
Define
Cerebral Hemorrhage
Bleeding in the brain
True or false
Hypoglycemia may appear in a stroke patient
True
Always check the ________ in patients with
altered mental status
Blood glucose level
Define
Seizure
a neurologic episode caused by a surge of electrical activity in the brain
Causes of this type of seizures
Epilectic
Congenital origin
Causes of this type of seizures
Structural
Tumor (benign or cancerous)
Infection (brain abscess)
Scar tissue from injury (within the skull)
Head trauma
Stroke
Causes of this type of seizures
Metabolic
Hypoxia
Abnormal blood chemical values
Hypoglycemia
Poisoning
Drug overdose
Sudden withdrawal from alcohol or medications
Causes of this type of seizures
Febrile
Sudden high fever (primarily in children)
Define
Hemiparesis
Weakness on one side of the body
Define
BE-FAST
stroke assessment
- Balance
- Eyes
- Facial droop
- Arm drift
- Speech
- Time
How can we assess Facial droop in a stroke patients?
Ask patient to show
teeth or smile
Does one side of the patient’s face droop
when he or she smiles?
How can we assess arm drift in a stroke patients?
Ask patient to close eyes
and hold both arms out with
palms up
Does the patient demonstrate weakness or
the inability to move one of the arms?
How can we assess speech in a stroke patients?
Ask patient to say,
“You can’t teach an old
dog new tricks.”
Is the patient slurring words or using words
that do not make sense?
Define
Aura
A sensation experienced before a seizure; serves as a
warning sign that a seizure is about to occur
What are the 4 stages of a seizure?
- Aura Phase
- Tonic phase (unresponsive + muscle rigidity/clenching)
- Clonic phase (uncontrollable muscle contractions)
- Postictal phase (diminished responsiveness/confusion)
Define
Photophobia
abnormal sensitivity to light
To assess a possible stroke patient for abnormal speech, you should:
Ask the patient to repeat a common phrase.
A patient is unresponsive with her arms and legs violently jerking. What phase of a generalized seizure is the patient demonstrating?
Clonic
When assessing a patient for facial droop, you should:
Ask the patient to smile and show their teeth
What is the name of the condition when the patient forgets about the injured side after a stroke?
Neglect
Define
Hemiparesis
weakness on one side of the body
Stroke
Define
Ataxia
Lack of coordination and balance
Define
Status epilepticus
prolonged seizures
(5 minutes or more)
Define
Epilepsy
2 or more unprovoked seizures occurring more than 24 hours apart
What are some signs someone is in the Postictal state?
confusion
Define
Congestive Heart Failure
occurs when the ventricular myocardium is so
profoundly damaged that it can no longer keep up with the return
flow of blood from the atria
True or false
CHF often happens after A MI
True
Define
Left sided Heart failure
the lungs become congested with fluid
Pulmonary Edema
Define
Glasgow Coma Scale
What does GCS assess?
- Eye opening (1-4)
- Verbal response (1-5)
- Motor response (1-6)
What are the 4 ratings for eye opening in the GCS?
- Spontaneous 4
- Responsive to speech 3
- Responsive to pain 2
- None 1
What are the 5 ratings for verbal response in the GCS?
- Oriented conversation 5
- confuses conversation 4
- inappropriate words 3
- incomprehensible sounds 2
- none 1
What are the 6 ratings for motor response in the GCS?
- Obeys commands 6
- localizes pain 5
- withdraws from pain 4
- abnormal flexion 3
- abnormal extension 2
- none 1
Define
Petit Mal
A seizure that does not involve any changes in motor activity
