Syndromes Flashcards
Parkinson’s
Function – movement
Location – forebrain -> frontal lobe -> primary motor cortex -> basal ganglia + midbrain-neighbor substantia nigra
Chemicals – -dopamine, +glutamate, -norepinephrine
Symptoms –
* impaired balance
* muscle rigidity
* bradykinesia (slow voluntary movement, decreased blinking + mask-like facial expressions)
* tremors starting in the hands
Comorbid symptoms – depression, anxiety, & neurocognitive disorders.
*extra- linked to the ApoE gene, increased risk of neurocognitive disorders
Korsakoff’s
Function – memory; damages the thalamus; caused by heavy drinking.
Location – forebrain -> thalamus + hypothalamus -> mammillary bodies
Chemicals – -thiamine
Symptoms –
* anterograde & retrograde amnesia
* confabulation (filling memory gaps with false info that the person believes to be true)
Huntington’s
Function – movement
Location – forebrain -> frontal lobe -> primary motor cortex -> basal ganglia + midbrain-neighbor substantia nigra
Chemicals – -dopamine, +glutamate, -GABA, -ACh
Symptoms – onset at 30-50y/o
* first, affect (depression & apathy)
* -> second, cognition (impaired short-term memory, concentration, & judgement)
* -> last, motor (clumsiness, fidgeting, & facial twitches) both athetosis (slow) & chorea (jerky) movements
Comorbid symptoms – late stages liked to neurocognitive disorders & difficulty speaking & swallowing.
*extra- linked to the autosomal dominant gene
Kluver-Bucy
Function – emotion
Location – forebrain -> limbic system -> amygdala + temporal lobe
Symptoms – in monkeys
* hyperphagia (over-eating)
* hyperorality (exam items by mouth)
* reduced fear & aggression
* hypersexuality
* psychic blindness (object agnosia with intact vision)
Traumatic Brain Injury
(TBI)
Function – memory, cognition, emotion, and movement
Location – varies
Symptoms – onset after injury to head
* anterograde amnesia used to determine injury severity & is a good predictor of recovery
* retrograde amnesia will decrease starting with the most distant long-term memories returning
* aprosodia (inability to understand/express prosody of speech)
* post-traumatic seizures (w/i 1wk of TBI) + post-traumatic epilepsy (after 1wk of TBI)
* mild injury, improvements start at 3mo & continue into the 1st year
* moderate – severe injury, symptoms are indefinite.
Comorbid symptoms – depression
*extra- linked to the autosomal dominant gene
Broca’s Aphasia
expressive aphasia
Function – speech
Location damage – frontal lobe left hemisphere -> Broca’s area
Symptoms –
* slow labored speech
* impaired repetition (ability to repeat others’ speech)
* anomia
Wernicke’s Aphasia
receptive aphasia
Function – speech
Location damage – temporal lobe left hemisphere -> Wernicke’s area
Symptoms –
* impaired comprehension of written + spoken language
* impaired repetition (ability to repeat others’ speech)
* anomia
* fluent, yet meaningless speech
Focal Onset Seizures
Function – seizure; starts in one part of brain, effecting one side of the body; can become generalized; four types (temporal, frontal, parietal, & occipital)
Types –
* focal onset aware seizures (simple partial seizure) consciousness unaffected, lasts 2min
* focal onset impaired seizures (complex partial seizure) consciousness change starting with an aura, lasts for 1-2min
* both aware + impaired include abnormal sensations, hallucinations, deja-vu,+ automatisms (repetitive movements, grunts, pacing)
Temporal Lobe Seizures
Function – most common;
Location – temporal lobe
Symptoms –
* odd taste/odor
* rising sensation in stomach + sudden intense fear/emotions
* deja-vu
* autonomic symptoms (sweating, fast heart rate, automatisms)
* impaired speech + comprehension
Damage –
* genetics
* TBI, brain tumors & infections, cerebrovascular accidents (strokes)
* triggered by psychological stress
Frontal Lobe Seizures
Function – 2nd most common; often occurs in sleep lasting 30sec.
Location – frontal lobe
Symptoms –
* kicking, rocking, bicycle peddling, abnormal posturing
* explosive screams or laughter
* impaired speech with intact comprehension
* autonomic symptoms (sweating, fast heart rate, automatisms)
Parietal Lobe Seizures
Function – seizure
Location – parietal lobe
Symptoms –
* tingling, numbness, pain, feelings of movement
* severely distorted body image.
Occipital Lobe Seizures
Function – seizure
Location – occipital lobe
Symptoms –
* rapid eye blinking, involuntary eye movement
* visual hallucinations, partial blindness, impaired visual acuity
Generalized Onset Seizures
Function – seizure; effecting both sides of the brain
Types –
* generalized onset motor seizures (tonic-clonic, grand mal seizures) consciousness change, includes tonic (facial + limb stiffness) then clonic (jerky movements) phases; afterwards, depression or confusion + no memory of seizure
* generalized onset non-motor seizures (absence seizures, petite mal seizures) brief l**osses of consciousness ~20sec **with absent stare, sometimes eyes rolls upwards, flutter, hand/head movements; afterwards, person continues as normal
Migraine Headaches
Function – intense throbbing pain usually on one side of the head; classical & common migraines.
Chemicals – **-serotonin **
Symptoms –
* vomiting/nausea, sound/light sensitivity
* classical (with aura) or common (without aura)
* triggered by stress, post-stress relaxation, weather changes, alcohol, certain foods, meal skipping
* worsens with bending forward, walking, routine activities
Drugs –
* non-steroidal anti-inflammatories
* ergot alkaloids
* SSRIs, SSRI agonists
* beta blockers
* thermal biofeedback + autogenic training combo
Hypertension
Function – high blood pressure; primary + secondary types
Symptoms –
* primary essential hypertension (cause unknown/”silent killer”/asymptomatic), 90% of all cases (risk factors are obesity, tobacco & salt use, stress, male, African American, older age, family history)
* secondary hypertension (caused by known disease); treated with lifestyle changes, diuretics, beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, blood pressure meds, biofeedback, relaxing.
