Neurological System Key Terms Ch.

41

Affect: outward expression of mood or emotion. Agnosia: inability to recognize, either by sight or sound, familiar objects such as a hairbrush Anosognosia: lack of awareness of own neurological deficits ANS (autonomic nervous system) : that part of the peripheral nervous system consisting of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems and controlling unconscious activities Aphasia: absence of speech; often the result of a brain lesion Areflexia: absence of reflexes Ataxia: inability to coordinate voluntary muscle action Aura: peculiar sensation preceding a seizure or migraine; may be a taste, smell, sight, sound, dizziness, or just a "funny feeling" Automatism: mechanical, repetitive motor behavior performed unconsciously Awareness: capacity to perceive sensory impressions through thoughts and actions Bradykinesia: slowness of voluntary movement and speech Cephalalgia: headache; also known as cephalgia Chorea: condition characterized by abnormal, involuntary, purposeless movements of all musculature of the body CNS (central nervous system): system of the brain and spinal cord Coprolalia: involuntary or inappropriate swearing Decerebration: severing of the spinal cord Dysarthria: difficult and defective speech due to a dysfunction of the muscles used for speech Dysphagia: difficulty in swallowing Emotional lability: loss of emotional control Encephalitis: inflammation of the brain Fasciculation: involuntary twitching of muscle fibers Glasgow Coma Scale: neurological screening test that measures a client's best verbal, motor, and eye response to stimuli Graphesthesia: ability to identify letters, numbers, or shapes drawn on the skin Hemiparesis: weakness of one side of the body Hemiplegia: paralysis of one side of the body Homonymous hemianopia : loss of vision in half of the visual field on the same side of both eyes Lasegue's sign: pain experienced upon gentle raising of the fully extended leg of the supine-positioned client to 20 to 60 degrees, stems from stretching of the inflamed sciatic nerve Meningitis: inflammation of the meninges Mentation: ability to concentrate, remember, or think abstractly

Neuralgia: paroxysmal pain that extends along the course of one or more nerves Neurogenic shock: hypotensive situation resulting from the loss of sympathetic control of vital functions from the brain Neurotransmitter: chemical substance produced by the body that facilitates or inhibits nerve-impulse transmission Nuchal rigidity: pain and rigidity in the neck Nystagmus: constant, involuntary movement of the eye in various directions Orientation: person's awareness of self in relation to person, place, time, and in some cases, situation Paraplegia: paralysis of lower extremities peripheral nervous system : system of the cranial nerves, spinal nerves, and the autonomic nervous system Postictal: after a seizure Quadriplegia: dysfunction or paralysis of both arms, both legs, and bowel and bladder Sclerotic: hardened tissue somatic nervous system: nerves that connect the central nervous system to the skin and skeletal muscles and control conscious activities Spinal shock: cessation of motor, sensory, autonomic, and reflex impulses below the level of injury; characterized by flaccid paralysis of all skeletal muscles, loss of spinal reflexes, loss of sensation, and absence of autonomic function below the level of injury Status epilepticus: acute, prolonged episode of seizure activity that lasts at least 30 minutes and ma or may not involve loss of consciousness Stereognosis: ability to recognize an object by feel Tetraplegia: quadriplegia (same) Unilateral neglect: failure to recognize or care for one side of the body vertigo: dizziness