Neuropsychology Flashcards
1
Q
Spinal cord
A
- carries information between the brain and peripheral nervous system
- consists of 31 segments divided into cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal
2
Q
Quadriplegia
A
- aka tetraplegia
- damage at cervical level
- loss of sensory or motor functions in the trunk, upper limbs, and lower limbs
3
Q
Paraplegia
A
- damage at thoracic, lumbar, or sacral level
- loss of sensory or motor functions in the lower limbs
4
Q
Conduction
A
electrochemical process by which info is recieved and processed within a neuon
5
Q
Resting Potential
A
Before a cell recieves signals from adjacent cells, it is at resting potential, which means that the inside of the cell is negatively charged, while the outside is positively charged
6
Q
Depolarization and Action Potential
A
The cell receives sufficient stimulation from other cells, the electrical balance between the interior and exterior changes, and hte interior becomes less negative - depolarization. This triggers action potential, which is an electrical impulse that travels quickly through the cell
7
Q
All or none principle
A
whenever stimulation received by a neuron from adjacent cells exceed a minimum threshold, the resulting action potential is always the same magnitude
8
Q
Conduction is influence by these two factors
A
1) the larger the diameter of the axon, the greater the speed of the nerve impulse
2) the thicker the myelin, the greater the speed
9
Q
Multiple sclerosis
A
loss of myelin that involves muscular weakness, impaired coordination and balance, sensory loss, and blurred or double vision
10
Q
Acetylcholine (ACh)
A
- involved in the control of voluntary movement, learning and memory, sexual behavior, sleeping
- inhibitory or excitatory, depending on location
11
Q
Dopamine
A
- involved in movement, learning, mood, and the reinforcing effects of stimulants, opiates, and nicotine
- Abnormal levels linked to depression, Schizophrenia, Tourette’s, ADHD, Huntington’s, and Parkinson’s
12
Q
Norepinephrine
A
- mood, dreaming, learning, and autonomic responses
- related to depression, mania, and panic disorder
13
Q
Serotonin (5-HT)
A
- regulation of anxiety, mood, memory, aggression, pain, sleep, appetite, and sexuality
- low levels: depression, aggression, PTSD, OCD, Bulimia
- high levels: Schizophrenia, Autism, decreased appetite
14
Q
Gamma-Amino Butyric Acid (GABA)
A
- main inhibitory NT
- motor control and anxiety
- anxiolytics: increase GABA
15
Q
Glutamate
A
- major excitatory NT
- LTP
16
Q
Endorphins
A
- endogenous morphine
- neuromodulators involved in reducing feelings of pain and producing feelings of pleasure
- runners high and pain-relieving effects of acupuncture and placebos
17
Q
Thyroxin
A
- controls metabolism
- undersecretion –> hypothyroidism: slows metabolism, causes reduced appetite, weight gain, lower HR, cold intolerance, decreased sex drive, fatigue, depression, and impaired memory
- oversecretion –> hyperthyroidism/Graves Disease: speeds up metabolism and causes increased appetite, weight loss, increased HR, nervousness, agitation, heat intolerance, insomnia, and decreased attn span
18
Q
Insulin
A
- released by pancreas
- stimulates the uptake of glucose and amino acids into cells
- Undersecretion can lead to diabetes and hyperglycemia
- Oversecretion can lead to hypoglycemia
19
Q
Cortisol
A
- secreted by the adrenal cortex
- regulates blood glucose levels
- undersecretion leads to Addison’s disease, which is muscle weakness, fatigue, low blood pressure, decreased appetite and weight loss, etc
- oversecretion leads to Cushing’s disease, which is obesity, hypertension, depression ,anxiety, etc
20
Q
Hindbrain
A
medulla oblongata, pons, cerebellum
21
Q
Midbrain
A
reticular activating system, substantia nigra
22
Q
Forebrain
A
hypothalamus, thalamus, basal ganglia, and limbic system
23
Q
Reticular activating system
A
regulates the sleep-wake transition, screens incoming sensory information especially during sleep, and arouses higher centers in the brain when important info should be paid attn to
24
Q
Substantia nigra
A
controls movement, plays a role in reward-seeking and addictive behaviors, contributes to Parkinson’s
25
Hypothalamus
- maintains the body's homeostasis by monitoring the body's internal states and controlling temp, metabolism
- motivated behaviors, feeding, sex, aggression, and maternal behavior
- physical expression of strong emotions such as rage, fear, and excitement
- Contains suprachiasmatic nucleus and mammillary bodies
26
Suprachiasmatic nucleus
regulates circadian rhythms, sensitivity to light and dark
27
Mammillary bodies
play a role in memory
28
Thalamus
Central relay station for sensory information (except olfactory, which goes directly to the amygdala)
29
Basal ganglia
- Caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, putamen
- extrapyramidal motor system, involved in posture and gross muscle movements, coordination of movement, process and relay info necessary for the control of voluntary movement, motor expression of emotion, sensorimotor learning
30
Limbic system
mediates the emotional component of behavior, made of amygdala, septum, cingulate cortex, hippocampus
31
Kluver-Bucy syndrome
amygdala lesions lead to reduced fear and aggression, increased docility, altered diet, and psychic blindness, hypersexuality
32
Hippocampus
memory and learning, memory consolidation (transfer to info from STM to LTM), degeneration leads to Alzheimer's, damage leads to anterograde amnesia
33
Contralateral representation
right hemi controls left body, left hemi controls right game; two exceptions are olfactory (right to right, left to left) and visual (right visual field to right)
34
Lateralization
- 90% of righties and 60% of lefties: left hemi is responsible for written and spoken language, logical and analytical thinking, expression of positive emotions
- right hemi responsible for understanding spatial relationship, creative and holistic thinking, expression of negative emotions
- hemi responsible for language is the dominant hemisphere
35
Split brain patients
- corpus callosum cut to relieve seizures - led to deficits in visuoprocessing
36
Primary motor cortex
pyramidal motor system, involved in voluntary movement
37
Premotor cortex
motor actions, observing other performing motor actions
38
Broca's area
Broca's aphasia: deficits in production of written and spoken language, speak slowly and with great difficulty, anomia, aware of deficits
39
Prefrontal cortex
- higher-order cognitive processes, working memory, regulation of memory, motor responses
- dysexecutive syndrome: impaired problem-soliving, planning, and abstract thinking, and apathy
- Pseudodepression: apathy, lack of motivation, reduced verbal output
- Pseudopsychopathy
40
Temporal lobe
auditory cortex, Wernicke's area
41
Wernicke's aphasia
Trouble understanding language, fluent speech that makes no sense, unaware of deficits
42
Conduction aphasia
comprehends language and speaks fluently but has anomia and difficulty repeating
43
HM
temporal lobectomy, short term memory and memory for info were intact, but unable to require new info or recall info acquired shortly before surgery
44
Parietal lobe
Somatosensory cortex
45
Somatosensory agnosia
tactile agnosia (inability to identify objects by touch), asomatognosia (inability to recognize one's own body parts), anosognosia (inability recognize one's own symptoms)
46
Apraxia
- inability execute purposeful movements
- ideomotor apraxia: cannot pantomime or perform particular action, but perform it spontaneously
- constructional apraxia: annoy draw or arrange blocks on pattern
47
Contralateral neglect
loss of knowledge about one side of body/environment, generally right parietal lobe and left field
48
Gerstmann's syndrome
lesions on the left hemi and involves a combo of agraphia, acalculia, finger agnosia, and left-right disorientation
49
Occipital lobe
visual cortex, damage can cause cortical blindness, blind spots, after-imates, alexia (inability to recognize printed words), visual agnosia (inability to recognize objects), prosopagnosia (inability to recognize faces)
50
Sensation v perception
Sensation: the receipt of info by the sensory receptors and translation of that info into nerve impulses sent to the brain
Perception: the process of becoming aware of and interpreting what has been sensed
51
Visual pathway
- cornea: transparent covering
- pupil: opening within the iris
- lens: focuses light waves on the retina, contains rods (black and white, sides) and cones (color, center of retina, called fovea)
- Optics nerves: tract to left hemi carries signals from right visual field of both eyes, tract to right hemi carries signals from left visual fields of both eyes
52
Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory
three types of cones that respond to red, blue, green
53
Hering's opponent-process theory
three types of opponent-process cells: red-green, yellow-blue, white-black
54
Color blindness
anomaly on the X chromosome, so males are more likely to be color blind; several types of color blindness, most common is red-green
55
Audition
physical stimuli for audition are sound waves, type of mechanical energy
56
Loudness v pitch v timbre
Loudness: intensity determine by amplitude measured in decibels
Pitch: frequency of sound waves measured in terns of cycles per second, hertz
Timbre: tonal quality of sound related to sound wave's complexity
57
Pain factors
extreme heat, cold, pressure; affected by past experience with pain, expectation about pain relief, and the presence of anxiety and depression
58
Gate-control theory
activation of large nerve fibers that carry info about touch, pressure, and vibration inhibits transmission of pain; activities that close the gate include massage, or applying heat or cold to injury
59
Neuropathic pain
nervous system trauma, surgery, disease, some drugs, phantom limb pain
60
Synesthesia
joining senses, involuntary perceptual condition in which stimulation of one sensory modality spontaneously elicits a sensation in another modality
61
Psychophysics: absolute threshold
weakest stimulus that a person can detect
62
Psychophysics: difference threshold
just noticeable difference, the smallest physical difference between two stimuli that is recognized as a difference
63
Weber's Law
JND for any stimulus increases in size in direct proportion to the magnitude of the stimulus (ie JND for weight is 2%)
64
Fechner's Law
logarithmic relationship between psychological sensation and the magnitude of a physical stimulus
65
Steven's Power Law
exponential relationship between psychological sensation and the magnitude of a physical stimulus, with the exponent varying for different kinds of stimuli; method of magnitude estimation
66
Stroke
- cerebrovascular accident is an onset of neurological symptoms caused by an interruption or severe reduction of blood flow to the brain
1 - Ischemic stroke - most common and occur when an artery that supplies blood to the brain becomes blocked
2 - Hemorrhagic stroke - occurs when a weakened blood vessel in the brain ruptures or leaks
- factors: hypertension, atherosclerosis, atrial fib, heart disease, diabetes, smoking, age over 55, male, AA, family history of stroke
67
Middle cerebral artery (stroke)
- supplies blood to frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes, and basal ganglia
- most common stroke
- leads to contralateral hemiplegia and hemiparesis in face and arm, contralateral visual field loss in both eyes, aphasia in dominant hemi, contralateral neglect in nondominant hemi
68
Anterior cerebral artery
- supplies blood to frontal and parietal lobes, corpus callosum, caudate nucleus
- stroke leads to contralateral hemiplegia in leg, impaired judgment and insight, personality change
69
Posterior cerebral artery
- supplies blood to thalamus, temporal and occipital lobes
| - stroke leads to cortical blindness, visual agnosia, language impairment, and memory loss
70
TBI: open head injury
- when the skull is penetrated (gunshot, knife)
- symptoms are focal and may resolve relatively rapidly
- some people do not lose consciousness
71
TBI: closed head injury
- occurs when blow does not penetrate skull
- more widespread damage, LOC
- sx: emotional, behavioral, physical, and cognitive
72
TBI Severity
Glasgow Coma + duration of posttraumatic amnesia (PTA) + duration of LOC
Mild: GCS 13-15, PTA less than 1 hr, LOC <30m
Moderate: GCS 9-12, PTA 1-24h, LOC 30m-24h
Severe: GCS <8, PTA >24 h, LOC >24 h
73
Huntington's disease
- degenerative disease caused by autosomal dominant gene and offspring have 50% chance
- onset age 30-50
- initial sx usually affective, followed by forgetfulness, personality changes, and motor sx
- later: athetosis and chorea, dysarthria, dysphagia, immobility, Neurocog Disorder
- suicide rates high, esp among younger people
74
Athetosis
slow writhing movements
75
Chorea
involuntary jerky movements of face, limbs, and trunk
76
Dysarthria
difficulty articulating words
77
Dysphagia
difficulty swallowing
78
Parkinson's disease
degenerative disease characterized by abnormalities in movement
- caused by loss of dopamine cells in substantia nigra, leading to deficits in basal ganglia, thalamus, and cortex
- sx: tremor, rigidity, postural instability, bradykinesia
79
Tremor
- hands, arms, and legs
- initial symptom of PD
- pill rolling: movements of thumb and forefinger
80
Rigidity
muscles of the neck, arms, and legs
| cogwheel rigidity is a combo of rigidity and tremor and characterized by short, jerky, ratchet-like movements
81
Postural instability
impaired balance and equilibrium, causes instability, stooped posture, and gait disturbances
82
Bradykinesia
slowness of voluntary movement, causes difficulty initiating and completing movements and affects both fine and gross motor functions, in the face produces a blank, mask-like facial expression
83
Partial seizures
originate in a localized area in one side of brain and affect one side of body
1- simple partial seizures
2- complex partial seizures: aura, automatisms, various part of brain, mostly temporal lobe
84
Generalized seizures
bilaterally symmetric
1 - tonic clonic - gran mal seizures - tonic stage is stiffening of muscles, clonic stage involves jerky movements
2 - absence seizures - petit mal
85
Migraines
- classic: starts with aura
| - common: does not have aura
86
Cluster headaches
severe burning or piercing non-throbbing pain that lasts for 15-90m more than once each day over several weeks or months
87
Agonists v antagonists
Agonists: produce effects similar to those produced by NTs
Inverse agonists: produce effects opposite to those produced by NTs
Antagonists: produce no activity but reduce or block the effects of a NTs
88
Drugs + age/race
- older age: decrease in metabolism/longer half-life
| - Asian As: metabolize more slowly than whites (benzos, lithium, some antidepressants, neuroleptics)
89
Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs)
- block the reuptake of norepinephrin and serotonin
- ex: imipramine (Tofranil), clomipramime (Anafranil), amitriptyline (Elavil)
- uses: hopelessness, anhedonia, physical symptoms of depression, panic attacks, agoraphobia, OCD
90
SSRIs
- block reuptake, increase serotonin
- fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), paroxetime (Paxil)
- MDD, OCD, panic d, social phobia, binge-eating, premature ejaculation
- can lead to serotonin syndrome
- compared to TCAs, quicker onset, fewer side effects, safer in overdose
91
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)
- block the breakdown of norepinephrine and serotonin
- phenelzine (Nardil), tranylcypromine (Parnate)
- atypical/treatment-resistant depression
92
SNRIs
- venlafaxine (Effexor), duloxetine (Cymbalta), desvenlafaxine (Pristiq)
- MDD, DAG, PD
93
NDRIs
- bupropion (Wellbutrin, Zyban)
| - depression, smoking cessation
94
Anti-seizure drugs
Carbamazepine (tegretol), valproic acid (depakote)
95
Traditional antipsychotics
- block dopamine, per the dopamine hypothesis - links Schizophrenia to overactivity of dopamine receptors
- phenothiazines (chlorpromazine/Thorazine, thioridazine/Mellaril), butyrophenones (haloperidol/Haldol)
- alleviate positive symptoms, no effect on negative symptoms
96
Side effects of traditional antipsychotics
Anticholinergic effects: dry mouth, urinary retention, blurred vision, tachycardia, gastric distress, and sexual dysfunction
Extrapyramidal side effects: parkinsonism (muscle stiffness, gait, posture, speech), dystonia (muscle contraction), akathisia, TD (abnormal movements of the face, tongue, jaw)
- Neuroleptic malignant syndrome: rare, life-threatening side effect w/in first 2 weeks of drug leading to muscle rigidity, high fever, unstable blood pressure
97
Atypical antipsychotics
- clozapine (Clozaril), risperidone (Risperdal), olanzapine (Zydrez), aripiprazole (Ability)
- affect dopamine as well as other NTs
- alleviate positive and negative sx
98
Benzodiazepines
- increase GABA
- diazepam (Valium), alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), lorazepam (Ativan), triazolam (Halcion)
- anxiety, insomnia, muscle spasms, seizures, alcohol withdrawal
99
Barbiturates
- GABA
- thiopental (Pentothal), amobarbital (Amytal), secobarbital (Seconal)
- general anesthetic, insomnia, anxiety
100
Azaspirones
buspirone (BuSpar) - anxiety
101
Narcotic - Analgesics
- mimic the effect's of the body's natural analgesics (endorphines)
- natural opioids: opium, morphine, codeine),
- synthetic/semi-synthetic opioids: heroin, methadone, oxycodone (Percodan, OxyContin), hydrocodone (Vicodin), meperidin (Demerol)
102
Psychostimulants
- mimic or potentiate the action of norepinephrine and dopamine
- methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta), pemoline (Cylert), amphetamine-destroamphetamine (Adderall), cocaine, methamphetamine
- ADHD, narcolepsy
103
NRIs
atomoxetine (Strattera) - nonstimulant drug for ADHD
104
Beta-blckers
- inhibit sympathetic nervous system
| - propanolol (Inderal)
105
Anti-alcohol durgs
- disulfram (Antabuse): inhibits alcohol metabolism causing nausea and vomiting
- naltrexone: opioid antagonist, reduces the pleasurable effects and cravings
106
Cognition enhancers
- cholinesterase inhibitors that inhibit breakdown of acetylcholine
- Cognex, Aricept, Exelon, Razadyne
- memory loss, Alzheimers
107
Practical Clinical Trials
- contrary to clinical trials that focus on the efficacy of an intervention, PCTs focus on the effectiveness when carried out in a typical community setting
108
Therapeutic Drug Monitoring
process of monitoring the concentration of a specific drug in a patient's bloodstream at certain intervals to achieve optimal effectiveness
109
Genetic screening methodologies
- Cytogenetic testing: examine chromosomal abnormalities
- Biochemical testing: examine proteins instead of the gene itself
- Molecular testing: directly analyze DNA sequences
