Week 4 Flashcards
What does the acronym SCALP stand for?
Skin
Connective tissue (dense, fibrous and fatty, blood vessels and nerves)
Aponeurosis (galea aponeuortica, from frontalis to occipitalis)
Loose connective tissue (collagen I and II in random layers)
Periosteum/pericranium (nutrients and repair)
Why is the aponeurosis of the skull clinically important?
Laceration through the aponeurosis = loss of anchoring of superficial layers, wide gaping wound needing sutures
Laceration not though aponeurosis = glue can be used
What 2 portions can the skull be divided into?
Vault and base
How is the skull designed to withstand a blow to the head?
Convex shape allows distribution of force to prevent fracture
What type of injury is caused by a hard blow to the skull?
Depressed skull fracture
What is a linear fracture?
Fracture at site of impact on vault with fracture lines radiating away
What type of fracture may take hours to present?
Base of skull fracture
How does a base of skull fracture present?
Bruising over mastoid process may be only initial sign; over time panda/raccoon eyes bruising is seen
What is the pterion?
The thin bony region where the frontal, parietal and temporal bones meet at the side of the skull
What major blood vessel lies near to the pterion and why is this clinically important?
Middle meningeal artery branches
At risk of intracranial bleeding as the bone is thin here
What are the 2 layers of the dura mater?
Periosteal layer - adheres to surface of cranium
Internal meningeal layer - continuous except at sinuses and reflections
What are the types of intracranial haematoma?
Extra/epidural haematoma
Subdural haematoma
Intracerebral haematoma
Explain the origin and distribution of epidural haematomas
Arterial bleeding from middle meningeal artery collects between periosteal layer of dura and skull
Blood strips dura away from periosteum but periosteum is fixed at point of sutures which stops blood spreading around whole skull
Explain the origin and distribution of subdural haematomas
Venous blood between dura and arachnoid junction
No limitation of flow so blood spreads more thinly
Why might an extradural haematoma be difficult to image on CT?
White blood can turn grey after some time, which makes it more difficult to differentiate from brain matter
What are the CT features of an extradural haematoma?
Characteristic lens shape of blood
Midline shifted away from blood
Swelling obstructs ventricles on the same side
What are the CT features of a subdural haematoma?
Thinly spread blood around brain circumference in crescent shape
Midline shift and swelling
What does the Monroe-Kellie principle dictate?
Intracranial volume is constant
How can volume expansion in the cranial cavity be compensated for?
CSF can displace small amount into spinal theca and venous system via arachnoid granules (75ml)
Intracranial blood can redistribute peripherally in a small amount (75ml)
What volume of mass will cause a rapid increase in ICP and what is this called?
100-120ml
Critical point
What 2 factors are not involved in compensation as they are fixed?
Brain volume (incompressible) Arterial volume (blood flow to brain is constant)
How does ICP affect cerebral perfusion pressure?
Blood moves from high to low pressure
Raised ICP decreases the pressure gradient which normally favours blood flow to the brain
What is cerebral perfusion pressure measurement used for medically?
Surrogate marker of blood flow to the brain
What is the formula linking cerebral blood flow, mean arterial pressure and intracranial pressure?
CPP = MAP - ICP
How does the brain normally maintain a constant blood flow?
Autoregulation of blood flow to brain independent of MAP by altering resistance of cerebral vessels
How is ICP monitored?
Neurological observations chart every 15 minutes - GCS, vital signs (pulse, temp), pupil response, motor/sensory response
What are the signs of increasing ICP?
Decreasing Glasgow Coma Scale score
Diminished pupil response to light
Lateralising signs
Briefly describe various stages of brain herniation
Displacement of cingulate gyrus to opposite side under falx cerebri (asymptomatic/drowsy/confused/weak) Brain moves downwards; uncus is squashed against midbrain which compresses oculomotor nerve (fixed, dilated pupil and then down and out) Brainstem compression (coma)
What is the Glasgow coma scale and what are its components?
Clinical assessment of consciousness
Check, observe, stimulate and rate the response - eyes, verbal, motor
How are the eyes, verbal and motor components of the GCS scored?
Eyes - spontaneous, to sound, to pressure, none
Verbal - orientates, confused, words, sounds, none
Motor - obeys commands, localising, normal flexion, abnormal flexion, extension, none
How is the olfactory nerve tested?
With eyes closed and one nostril plugged, ask the patient to identify a familiar smell; test the other nostril with a different smell
Can also just ask the patient if there has been any changes to their sense of smell
How is the optic nerve tested?
Visual acuity
Visual fields
Pupil reflexes
Fundoscopy
How are the oculomotor, trochlear and abducens nerves tested?
Ask the patient to follow the movement of your finger with their eyes as you trace a letter H in the air in front of them
How is the trigeminal nerve tested?
Sensory - ask the patient to close their eyes, touch them lightly in various areas with a cotton wool ball and ask them to let you know when they can feel it
Motor (masseter and temporalis) - place your fingertips on the patient’s temples and then jaw, asking them to clench their teeth each time
Jaw jerk reflex
Corneal reflex
How is the facial nerve tested?
Ask the patient to raise their eyebrows, frown, smile and puff out their cheeks as well as asking them to close their eyes tightly and resist your attempts to open them
How is the vestibulocochlear nerve tested?
Stand behind the patient and whisper numbers which they should repeat
Hold a ticking watch from a distance and bring it slowly towards the patient until they can hear it
Rinne’s and Weber’s tests for hearing loss
How is Rinne’s test conducted?
Place a sounding tuning fork on the patient’s mastoid process and the next to their ear and ask which is louder (ear should be louder)
How is Weber’s test conducted?
Place the tuning fork base down on the centre of the patient’s forehead and ask if it is louder in either ear (should be equal)
How is the vestibular portion of the vestibulocochlear nerve tested?
Not usually tested in routine cranial nerve exam
How is the glossopharyngeal nerve tested?
Gag reflex
How is the vagus nerve tested?
Ask the patient to say “aah” and check their uvula for deviation
Normal speech is also indicative of functioning vagus nerve
How is the accessory nerve tested?
Ask the patient to turn their head whilst you apply resistance with your hand on their cheek (sternocleidomastoid)
Place your hands on the patient’s shoulders and ask them to shrug while you apply resistance (trapezius)
How is the hypoglossal nerve tested?
Ask the patient to stick out their tongue and check for fasiculations, deviation or wasting
What nerve supplies sensory innervation for touch and temperature to the nasal cavity?
Trigeminal nerve
What areas of the eye are under parasympathetic control?
Constrictor pupillae
Ciliary muscle
What are the afferent and efferent nerves involved in the corneal reflex?
Afferent - trigeminal
Efferent - facial
What nerves supply taste innervation to the tongue?
Facial nerve anterior 2/3
Glossopharyngeal posterior 1/3
What are the afferent and efferent nerves involved in the gag reflex?
Afferent - glossopharyngeal
Efferent - vagus
Where is a berry aneurysm likely to be found?
Circle of Willis
What cognitive processes can attention be subdivided into?
Arousal
Vigilance
Divided attention
Selective attention
What is an example of a domain-specific cognitive process?
Spatial awareness
What is attention?
A global cognitive process encompassing multiple sensory modalities, operating across sensory domains
What is the result of a breakdown in global attention?
Delirium/acute confusional state
What is the result of impaired arousal?
Drowsiness
What is the result of impaired vigilance?
Impersistence (inability to sustain simple voluntary acts)
What is the result of impaired divided or selective attention?
Distractible (easily distracted)
What parts of the brain are involved in inattention/neglect?
Prefrontal, parietal and limbic cortex
What part of the brain is involved in drowsiness/delirium/coma?
Ascending reticular activating system (ARAS)
What is the ARAS?
Ascending reticular activating system - set of connected nuclei in the brain responsible for regulating wakefulness and sleep-wake transitions
What is top-down modulation?
Ability to direct attention toward encountered stimuli based on our goals
What is bottom-up modulation?
Ability to direct attention based on stimulus characteristics (e.g. novelty or salience)
What cortical areas are involved in top-down modulation?
Prefrontal cortex
Parietal cortex
Limbic cortex
What is the limbic system?
A complex brain network which controls basic emotions (fear, pleasure, anger) and drives (hunger, sex, dominance, care of offspring)
What are the components of the limbic system?
Cingulate gyrus, hippocampus, fornix, amygdala, orbital cortex, prefrontal cortex, mamillary bodies
What brain area is involved in bottom-up regulation?
ARAS
What does the ARAS consist of?
Brainstem nuclei, thalamic nuclei, cortex
What clinical tests are there for attention?
Orientation in time and place
Serial 7s (counting down from 100 in 7s)
Digit span and backwards
Months of the year/days of the week in reverse order
Alternation tasks
Stroop test (saying different coloured words)
Star cancellation test
What are the 2 types of memory?
Long-term and immediate/working
What are the 2 types of long-term memory?
Explicit/declarative
Implicit/procedural
What are the 2 types of explicit/declarative memory?
Episodic and semantic
What are the 2 types of implicit/procedural memory?
Motor skills and classical conditioning
What is immediate/working memory?
Immediate recall of small amounts of verbal or spatial information