Ch. 10: The Nervous System & Mental Health

Caus/o

Burning, burn

Cerebr/o

Cerebrum, brain

Concuss/o

Shaken together, violently agitated

Contus/o

Bruise

Encephal/o

Brain

-esthesia

Sensation, feeling

Esthet/o

Feeling, nervous sensation, sense of perception

-mania

Madness

Mening/o

Membranes, meninges

Neur/i, neur/o

Nerve, nerve tissue

-phasia

Speak or speech

Phobia

Abnormal fear

Psych/o

Mind

Radicul/o

Root or nerve root

-tropic

Having an affinity for

Acrophobia

An excessive fear to heights

Acetylcholine

Neurotransmitter; muscle action

Acute flaccid myelitis

Inflammation of the spinal cord that most commonly occurs in children after a viral infection

Alzheimer’s disease

A group of disorders involving the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language

Altered levels of consciousness

Decrease in consciousness due to injury, disease, or substances, such as medication, drugs, alcohol

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

A rapidly progressive neurological disease that attacks the nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscles

Amnesia

Memory disturbance characterized by a total or partial inability to recall past experiences

Anesthetic

Medication used to induce anesthesia

Anesthetist

A medical professional who specializes in administering anesthesia but is not a physician

Anesthesiologist

Physician who specializes in administering anesthetic agents before and during surgery

Anorexia nervosa

An eating disorder characterized by a false perception of body appearance that leads to an inability to maintain a healthy body weight

Anxiety disorders

Mental condition characterized by excessive, irrational dread of everyday situations, or fear that is out of proportion to the real danger in a situation

Arteriovenous malformation

Abnormal connection between the arteries and veins in the brain is usually congenital and can rupture suddenly at any age

Ascending nerve tracts

Carry nerve impulses toward brain

Aphasia

Loss of ability to speak right and or comprehend the written or spoken word

Autism spectrum disorder

Difficulty developing normal social relationships and communication skills

Autonomic nerve fibers

Carry instructions to the organs and glands from the autonomic nervous system

Axon

Process that conducts impulses away from the nerve cell

Bell’s palsy

Temporary paralysis of the seventh cranial nerve that causes paralysis only on the affected side of the face

Bipolar disorder

Condition characterized by cycles of severe mood changes shifting between highs and severe lows that affect a person’s attitude, energy and ability to function

Bulimia nervosa

Eating disorder, characterized by frequent episode episodes of binge followed by compensatory behavior, such as self induced vomiting, excessive exercising, or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics or other medications

Carotid ultrasonography

An ultrasound study of the carotid artery performed to predict or diagnose an ischemic stroke

Catatonic behavior

Marked by a lack of responsiveness stupor and tendency to remain in a fixed posture

Causalgia

Persistent, severe, burning pain that usually follows an injury to a sensory nerve

Cerebral contusion

Bruising of the brain tissue as a result of a head injury that causes the brain to bounce against the skull

Cephalagia

Headache

Cerebral palsy

A group of disorders characterized by poor muscle control, spasticity, and other neurologic deficiencies

Cerebrovascular accident

Brain damage that occurs when blood flow to the brain is disrupted

Stroke

Cervical radiculopathy

Nerve pain caused by pressure on the spinal nerve roots in the neck region

Chiari malformation

Congenital condition in which part of the cerebellum extends down the spinal canal

Claustrophobia

Abnormal fear of being in small or enclosed spaces

Cluster headaches

Intensely painful headaches that affect one side of the head and may be associated with tearing if the eyes and nasal congestion

Cognition

The mental activities associated with thinking, learning and memory

Coma

A deep state of unconsciousness marked by the absence of spontaneous eye movements, no response to pain stimuli and no vocalization

Coup

An injury occurring within the school near the point of impact

Contrecoup

And that occurs beneath the school opposite to the area of impact

Counterblow

Concussion

A violent shaking up or jarring of the brain

Cranial hematoma

A collection of blood trapped in the tissues of the brain

Dendrite

Root-like processes that receive impulses and conduct them to the cell body

Delirium

An acute condition of confusion, disorientation, disordered thinking and memory, agitation, and hallucinations

Delirium tremens

A disorder involving sudden and severe mental changes or seizures caused by abruptly stopping the use of alcohol

Delusion

A false personal belief that is maintained despite obvious proof or evidence to the contrary

Dementia

A slowly progressive decline in mental abilities including memory, thinking and judgment that is often accompanied by personality changes

Descending nerve tracts

Carry nerve impulses away from the brain

Dopamine

Neurotransmitters; motivation, pleasure, muscle movement

Dura mater

The thick, tough, outermost membrane of the meninges. Dura means hard, and mater means mother

Dyslexia

A learning disability characterized by substandard reading achievement due to the inability of the brain to process symbols correctly

Electroencephalography

The process of recording the electrical activity of the brain through the use of electrodes attached to the scalp

Embolic stroke

Occurs when a blood clot or other debris forms in a blood vessel, somewhere other than the brain and travels throughout the bloodstream to lodge in the narrower brain arteries

Encephalitis

Inflammation of the brain

Encephalocele

Congenital herniation of brain tissue through gap in the skull

Endorphins

Neurotransmitter; Help relieve pain

Epidural anesthesia

Regional anesthesia produced by injecting medication into the epidural space of the lumbar or sacral region of the spine

Epilepsy

A chronic neurological condition characterized by recurrent episodes of seizures of varying severity

Factitious disorder

A condition in which a person acts as if he/she has a physical or mental illness when they are not really sick

Ganglion

Nerve center made up of a cluster of nerve cell bodies in it side CNS

Gender dysphoria

A condition where a person sex at birth, does not match the gender with which they currently identify potentially causing significant amounts of stress

Transgender

Glial cells

Provide support and protection for neurons

Glioblastoma

Type of fast growing malignant brain tumor that forms from glial cells

Guillain Barre syndrome

Inflammation of the mileage sheet of peripheral nerves characterized by rapid worsening muscle weakness that can lead to temporary paralysis

Hallucination

A sensory perception experienced in the absence of external stimulation

Hemorrhagic stroke

Damage to the brain that occurs when a blood vessel in the brain leaks

Hydrocephalus

A condition in which excess CSF accumulates within the ventricles of the brain

Hyperesthesia

A condition of abnormal and excessive sensitivity to touch, pain, or other sensory stimuli

Huntington’s disease

Genetic disorder that is classified as a neurodegenerative disease

Ischemic stroke

Brain damage that occurs when the flow of blood to the brain is blocked by the narrowing or blockage of an artery

Innervation

Supply of nerves to a specific body part

Intracranial pressure

Amount of pressure inside the skull

Kleptomania

Disorder characterized by repeatedly stealing objects, neither for personal use nor for their monetary value

Lethargy

A lowered level of consciousness marked by listlessness, drowsiness and apathy

Lewy body dementia

Second most common type of dementia, occurs when abnormal proteins interfere with cell function in the brain

Manic behavior

Abnormally elevated mood of euphoria, including inappropriate elation, increased ability, severe insomnia, poor judgment in inappropriate social behavior

Meninges

System of membranes that enclose the brain and spinal cord

Meningitis

Inflammation of the meninges of the brain and spinal cord

Meningocele

The congenital herniation of the meninges through a defect in the skull or spinal column

Meningioma

Common, slow growing and usually benign tumor if the meninges

Migraine headaches

A headache characterized by throbbing pain on one side of the head and sometimes preceded by a warning aura

Multiple sclerosis

A progressive autoimmune disorder characterized by inflammation that causes demyelination of the myelin sheath

Myelin sheath

Protective covering made up of glial cells

Myelitis

Inflammation of the spinal cord/bone marrow

Myelosis

A tumor of the spinal cord

Myelography

A fluoroscopic and CT study of the spinal cord after the injection of a contrast medium through a lumbar puncture

Narcolepsy

A sleep disorder consisting of a sudden and uncontrollable brief episodes of falling asleep during the day

Neurotransmitters

Chemical substances that make it possible for messages to cross from the synapse of a neuron to the target receptor

Neurotomy

Surgical division or dissection of a nerve