Wk4 - Neurological Assessment

Question 1

3 common neurological diseases are:

Answer 1

• Parkinson’s disease
• Stroke
• Alzheimer’s disease

Question 2

What is the purpose of the nervous system?

Answer 2

• control all body functions

* control all thought processes

Question 3

What are the tasks of the nervous system?

Answer 3

• maintains homeostasis
• receives, interprets and reacts to stimuli
• controls voluntary/ involuntary processes/ cognition

Question 4

What are the protective layers of the CNS?

Answer 4

• Scalp
• Skull
• Spinal column: Meninges

Question 5

What does the spinal column consist of?

Answer 5

Meninges:

1. ) dura matter
2. ) arachnoid matter
3. ) pia matter

Question 6

What are the lobes of the cerebrum?

Answer 6

• Parietal lobe - sense of touch, awareness of relationships, reading
• Occipital lobe - vision
• Temporal lobe - memory, hearing, language, processing info
• Frontal lobe - problem solving, emotional control, moving, talking

Question 7

What does the cerebellum do?

Answer 7

controls balance, coordination, skilled motor activity

Question 8

What does the brainstem do?

Answer 8

controls breathing, heart rate, sleep

Question 9

What does the cross-section of a spinal cord reveal?

Answer 9

• Gray matter
• White matter
• Dorsal horn
• Ventral horn

Question 10

What is the difference between gray matter and white matter including:
FUNCTION
CONSISTS OF
COLOUR

Answer 10

Gray matter
FUNCTION: processing
CONSISTS OF: nerve cell bodies
COLOUR: Gray because gray nuclei

White matter
FUNCTION: allows communication from gray matter to other parts of the body
CONSISTS OF: fibres and extended axons
COLOUR: White because of white myelinated sheath

Question 11

How many spinal nerves are there?

Answer 11

31 pairs
8 cervical
12 thoracic
5 lumbar
5 saccral
1 coccygeal

Question 12

What are the steps of the motor and sensory pathway?

Answer 12

1. ) receptor : skin
2. ) sensory neuron
3. ) integration centre
4. ) motor neuron
5. ) effector

Question 13

How many cranial nerves are there?

Answer 13

12 cranial nerves

Olfactory, Optic, Oculomotor, Trochlear, Trigeminal, Abducens, Facial, Acoustic, Glossopharyngeal, Vagus, Spinal accessory, Hypoglossal

Question 14

ANS is divided into 2 functional subdivisions which are:

Answer 14

Sympathetic (fight or flight)

Parasympathetic (rest or digest)

Question 15

What is a reflex?

Answer 15

specific response to an adequate stimulus and occurs unconsciously

Question 16

Assessment of Neurological Sys includes:

Answer 16

Assessment of:

• LOC
• Sensation
• Cranial nerves
• Motor function

Question 17

What assessments can be done for the LOC?

Answer 17

• Glasgow coma scale

- Motor responses/ strength

Question 18

What do cognitive assessments consist of? (3)

Answer 18

Assessment of:

• Communication (ability to read, follow simple commands, rate of speech)
• Cognitive abilities and mentation: attention, memory, calculation
• Physical appearance: posture, movements, symmetry of facial expressions

Question 19

What are the vital centres of the medulla?

Answer 19

1. ) Respiratory centre - controls rate and depth of breathing
2. ) Cardiac centre - regulates heart beat
3. ) Vasomotor centre - regulates blood pressure by controlling diameter of blood vessels