NURS 102 Chap 10 - Nervous System

Cerebrum

thinking, personality, sensations, movements, memory

Thalamus

relay station - triage center

sensory impulses, control of awareness and consciousness

Hypothalamus

body temperature, sleep, appetite, emotions

control of the pituitary gland

cerebellum

coordination of voluntary movements and balance

pons and mid-brain

connection of nerve and nerve fiber pathways

to eyes and face too

medulla oblongata

nerve fibers cross over - left to right and right to left

centers to regulate heart, blood vessels, and respiratory

acetylcholine

neurotransmitter chemical released at the ends of nerves

afferent nerve

carries messages to brain and spinal cord

sensory nerve

af- to or up

arachnoid membrane

middle layer of the meninges

“spider” - the one all over the brain

astrocyte

glial cell

transports water and salt from capillaries in the nervous system

autonomic nervous system

“automatic system”

involuntary body functions - muscles, glands, organs

axon

fiber that is a part of a neuron

carries nerve impulses along nerve cell

blood-brain barrier

protective separation between blood and brain cells

makes it hard for substances to penetrate capillary walls and go into brain

brainstem

posterior - connects cerebrum with spinal cord

midbrain, pons, medulla oblongata

cauda equina

spinal nerves at the end of the spinal cord

cell body

part of nerve that has the nucleus

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord

cerebellum

posterior

coordinates muscle movements and maintains balance

cerebral cortex

outer region of cerebrum

sheets of nerve cells and gray matter

cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)

fluid that circulates through brain and spinal cord

cerebrum

largest part of the brain

voluntary muscle movements — vision, speech, taste, hearing, thought, memory

cranial nerves

nerves carrying messages to and from the brain to head and neck etc

12 pairs

dendrite

branching part of neuron

first part to receive the nerve impulse

dura mater

thick

outermost meninge layer

efferent nerve

carries messages away from the brain and spinal cord

motor nerve

ef- away

ependymal cell

glial cell

helps create CSF

lines the membrane in the brain and spinal cord

ganglion

collection of nerve cell bodies in peripheral nervous system (PNS)

glial cell

supportive and connective nerve cell that does NOT carry nerve impulses

EX astrocytes, microglial, ependymal, oligodendrocytes

can reproduce

gyrus

the flat surface of the brain

hypothalamus

beneath the thalamus

controls — sleep, appetite, body temperature, and pituitary gland

medulla oblongata

just above the spinal cord

controls - breathing, heartbeat, size of blood vessels, nerve fibers cross over

meninges

3 protective membranes for the brain and spinal cord

microglial cell

phagocyte glial cell — eats waste products from CNS

midbrain

uppermost portion of the brainstem

motor nerve

carries messages away from brain

efferent nerve

myelin sheath

white fatty tissue surrounds and insulates the axon

speeds up impulses!

nerve

collection of axons carrying electrical impulses

neurotransmitter

chemical messenger at the end of nerve cells

stims or inhibits other cells

EX acetylcholine, norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin

oligodendroglial cell

glial cell forms the myelin sheath

oligodendrocyte

parasympathetic nerves

autonomic NS

rate rate, breathing, muscles of the GI tract

parenchyma

distinguishable and essential organs of the system

EX hepatocytes, nephrons

peripheral nervous system

nerves outside the brain and spinal cord

cranial, spinal, and autonomic nerves

pia mater

thin and delicate inner membrane of the meninges

plexus

large interlacing network of nerves

lumbosacral, cervical, brachial

pons

anterior to the cerebellum, between the midbrain and medulla

bridge/connection to different parts of the brain

receptor

receives and transmits a stimulus to sensory nerves

skin, ears, eyes, and taste

sciatic nerve

nerve from base of spine to the thigh, lower leg, and foot

EX sciatica is pain of inflammation along the nerve

sensory nerve

messages to brain and spinal cord from receptor

afferent nerve

spinal nerves

pairs - along each side of the spinal cord

transmit to and from spinal cord

stimulus

change in internal or external environment creating a response

light, sound, touch, pressure, or pain

stroma

connective tissue of an organ

EX glial cells make up this in the tissue of the brain

sulcus

the grooves/indent on the outside of the brain

sympathetic nerves

autonomic nerves influence bodily function, involuntarily in times of stress

synapse

space where a nervous impulse travels nerves

thalamus

relay center of the brain

conducts impulses between spinal cord and cerebrum

relayed through here and then sent to the right part of the cerebrum

vagus nerve

10th cranial nerve

branches to larynx, trachea, bronchi, lungs, aorta, esophagus, and stomach

“wandering”

ventricles of the brain

canals of the brain that contains cerebrospinal fluid

EX ventricles of the heart

cerebell/o

cerebrum

dur/o

dura mater

encephal/o

brain

gli/o

glial cells

lept/o

thin, slender

mening/o, meningi/o

membranes, meninges

my/o

muscle

myel/o

spinal cord

neur/o

nerve

pont/o

pons

radicul/o

nerve root

thalam/o

thalamus

thec/o

sheath (meninges)

vag/o

vagus nerve, CN X

alges/o, -algesia

sensitivity to pain

-algia

pain

caus/o

burning

comat/o

deep sleep

coma

esthesi/o, -esthesia

feeling

nervous sensation

kines/o, kinesi/o, -kinesia, -kinesis, -kinetic

movement

-lepsy

seizure

lex/o

word, phase

-paresis

weakness

-phasia

speech

-plegia

paralysis

-praxia

action

-sthenia

strength

syncop/o

to cut off, cut short

tax/o

order, coordination

hydrocephalus

abnormal accumulation of fluid (CSF) in the brain

accumulating pressure in the ventricles of the brain

• to relieve pressure, a catheter/shunt to drain

result of tumors and infection

spina bifida

congenital defects in lumbar spinal column by an imperfect joining of vertebral parts (from neural tube)

only evident from xray, could be protruding but not often

Alzheimer disease (AD)

brain disorder by gradual and progressive mental deterioration, personality changes, and impaired daily functioning

characteristics — confusion, memory failure, disorientation, restlessness, speech disturbances

atrophy of the cerebral cortex, widened cerebral sulci, senile plaques, tangles

no known cause

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

degenerative disorder of motor neurons in the spinal cord and brainstem

atrophy and weakness in muscles of hands, forearms, and legs, swallowing, talking, respiratory muscles are effected

no known cause

EX Lou Gehrig disease, after famous basketball player who had it

epilepsy

chronic brain disorder by reacuring seizure activity

sudden discharges of electrical activity in the brain — signs of underlying conditions

tonic-clonic → grand mal, ictal events - sudden loss of consciousness, falling, tonic contractions (stiff muscles), tonic contractions (twitching)

• begins with an aura — dizziness, numbness, or effected sense of smell

petit mal seizures — for children

Huntington disease (Huntington’s)

hereditary disorder marked by degenerative changes in the cerebrum — abrupt involuntary movements and mental deterioration

personality changes, dance like jerking movements in arms/legs/face — Huntington chorea

chromosome 4

no cure

multiple sclerosis (MS)

destruction of myelin sheath on CNS neurons and replaced my sclerotic hard tissue

disability for 20-40 year olds

long periods of remission then relapse

demyelination prevents conducting nerve impulses through the axon

causes → parasthesias, muscle weakness, unsteady walking, paralysis, blurred vision, impacted speech

can see on MRIs, tied to an autoimmune disease?

Myasthenia gravis (MG)

autoimmune neuromuscular disorder — weakness of voluntary muscles

chronic autoimmune disorder — antibodies block the ability for neurotransmitters to transmit nerve impulses to muscle cell

gradual onset

symptoms — double vision, facial weakness, respiratory paralysis, drooping of upper eyelid

palsy

paralysis — partial or complete loss

cerebral palsy → partial paralysis of muscular function because of loss of oxygen or blood to the cerebrum during perinatal period

results — one side of the face is paralyzed

cause is infection

Parkinson disease (Parkinson’s)

degeneration of neurons in basal ganglia

happens later in life — tremors, weak muscles, slowed movement

from a deficient amount of dopamine