Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) & Related Disorders

Question 1

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)?

Answer 1

Spinal nerves that come to and from the spinal cord

Carry both sensory AND motor neurons to specific segments of the body

Question 2

‘Dermatome’?

Answer 2

Area of skin that provides sensory input to one pair of spinal nerves

Eg.) L3 nerve (sensation = motor & sensory), I get sensation from the mid-thigh
- if client doesn’t feel L3 area of one thigh there may be a problem in L3 spine ( = a dermatome problem in just that area of the leg). Something could be squishing the L3 nerve root

[if it is a sensory problem you usually see a motor deficit]

Question 3

‘Myotome’?

Answer 3

All muscles innervated by the motor neurons in a single spinal segment

Question 4

‘Plexus’?

Answer 4

A network of nerves

Question 5

‘Femoral Nerve Block’?

Answer 5

Anaesthetic goes into femoral nerve in the thigh (because it controls the quadraceps, as well as L3)

• If distribution is everywhere (weakness) means could also be a femoral nerve problem

Question 6

How do the CNS & PNS communicate?

Answer 6

Neurotransmittion

Question 7

How many neurons are in the adult brain?

Answer 7

100,000,000,000

And there are:
100,000,000, 000,000 connections amongst these naurons

Question 8

How is nerve information transmitted?

Answer 8

Via electrical signals that travel along the neuron

- & is carried to the next neuron through a series of biochemical events

Question 9

Aging affect on nervous system?

Answer 9

• Loss of neurons
• Decreased nerve impulse capacity
• Information conduction & processing decreases
• Motor movements slow down
• Reflex time increases
• Altered senses (vision, hearing etc…)