Disorders of the Nervous System

Disorders of the Nervous System http://neurology.stanford.edu/images/brain.jpg

MENINGITIS • Inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord • May be bacterial or viral • Symptoms – headache, fever and stiff neck • In severe form, may lead to paralysis, coma and death • If bacterial, may be treated with antibiotics http://www.humanillnesses.com/original/images/hdc_0001_0002_0_img0169.jpg

ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE • Progressive disease that begins with problems remembering • Nerve endings in cortex of brain degenerate and block signals that pass between nerve cells • Abnormal fibers build up creating tangles • Cause – unknown

First stage (2-4 years) involves confusion, short-term memory loss, anxiety, poor judgement • 2nd stage (2-10 years) increase in memory loss, difficulty recognizing people, motor problems, logic problems, and loss of social skills • 3rd stage (1-3 years) inability to recognize oneself, weight loss, seizures, mood swings and aphasia http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/CUTS/signs/elderly.jpg

You are more likely to get Alzheimer's disease (AD) if you: • Are older. However, developing AD is not a part of normal aging. • Have a close blood relative, such as a brother, sister, or parent with AD. • Being female • Having high blood pressure for a long time • History of head trauma

The early symptoms of AD can include: • Difficulty performing tasks that take some thought, but used to come easily, such as balancing a checkbook, playing complex games (such as bridge), and learning new information or routines • Getting lost on familiar routes • Language problems, such as trouble finding the name of familiar objects • Misplacing items • Personality changes and loss of social skills

As the AD becomes worse, symptoms interfere with your ability to take care of yourself • Change in sleep patterns, • Difficulty doing basic tasks: cooking • Difficulty reading or writing • Forgetting details about current events • Forgetting events in your own life history, losing awareness of who you are • loss of ability to recognize danger • Using the wrong word

Treatment • There is no cure for AD. The goals of treatment are: • Manage symptoms, such as behavior problems, confusion, and sleep problems • Support family members and other caregivers • Drug Treatment -Meds used to slow rate of symptoms. The benefit from these drugs is usually small. You and your family may not notice much of a change.

prognosis • How quickly AD gets worse is different for each person. If AD develops quickly, it is more likely to worsen quickly. • Patients often die earlier than normal but may live from 3 - 20 years after diagnosis. • The final phase of the disease may last from a few months to several years. During that time, the patient becomes totally disabled. Death usually occurs from an infection or organ failure.

Disorders of the nervous system and their treatments • Epilepsy What is epilepsy? What are the symptoms? How is it treated? Should a person with epilepsy be allowed to drive? 3.02 Understand the functions and disorders of the nervous system

EPILEPSY • Seizure disorder of the brain, characterized by recurring and excessive discharge from neurons • Seizures believed to be result of spontaneous, uncontrolled electrical activity of neurons • Cause – uncertain • Victim may have hallucinations and seizures • Grand mal – severe, convulsive seizure • Petit mal – milder http://www.pennhealth.com/neuro/images/ep_gifs/ep_anim_1.gif

Epilepsy • Epilepsy is a brain disorder in which a person has repeated seizures (convulsions) over time. Seizures are episodes of disturbed brain activity that cause changes in attention or behavior. • Epilepsy occurs when permanent changes in brain tissue cause the brain to be too excitable or jumpy. The brain sends out abnormal signals

Symptoms • Symptoms vary from person to person. Some people may have simple staring spells, while others have violent shaking and loss of alertness. The type of seizure depends on the part of the brain affected and cause of epilepsy.

Treatment • Treatment may involve surgery or meds. • Lifestyle or medical changes can increase the risk of seizures • New prescribed medications • Emotional stress • Illness, especially infection • Lack of sleep • Pregnancy • Skipping doses of epilepsy medications • Use of alcohol or other recreational drugs

Hydrocephalus Hydro- cephal -us Define the terms. Do the meanings of the parts represent the whole? Who is most likely to develop hydrocephalus? How is it treated? 3.02 Understand the functions and disorders of the nervous system

Hydrocephalus may begin while the baby is growing in the womb. It is common in babies who have a myelomeningocele, a birth defect in which the spinal column does not close properly.

Hydrocephalus is a buildup of CSFinside the skull that leads to brain swelling. • Hydrocephalus means "water on the brain." • Hydrocephalus is due to a problem with the flow of fluid that surrounds the brain. • CSF normally moves through the brain and the spinal cord, and is soaked into the bloodstream. • Can be caused by birth defects, infection, tumors or trauma

Symptoms • Seizures • Separated sutures • Vomiting • Changes in facial appearance-eyes • Difficulty feeding • Excessive sleepiness • Headache • Poor temper control • Loss of coordination and trouble walking

Treatment • The goal of treatment is to reduce or prevent brain damage by improving the flow of CSF. • Surgery may be done to remove a blockage, if possible. • If not, a flexible tube called a shunt may be placed in the brain to re-route the flow of CSF. The shunt sends CSF to another part of the body, such as the belly area, where it can be absorbed.

Multiple sclerosis What are the symptoms? Who is most likely to develop it? How is it treated? What is the prognosis? 3.02 Understand the functions and disorders of the nervous system

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system).

Multiple sclerosis (MS) affects women more than men. commonly diagnosed between ages 20 and 40, but can be seen at any age. • MS is caused by damage to the myelin sheath. When this nerve covering is damaged, nerve signals slow down or stop. • The nerve damage is caused by inflammation. Inflammation occurs when the body's own immune cells attack the nervous system. This can occur along any area of the brain and spinal cord. • It is unknown what exactly causes this to happen. The most common thought is that a virus, gene defect, or both, are to blame. • You are slightly more likely to get this condition if you have a family history of MS

Muscle symptoms: balance, spasms • Bowel and bladder symptoms: incontinence • Eye symptoms: double vision • Fatigue is a common symptom as MS progresses. It is often worse in the late afternoon

Treatment • No known cure at this time- focus on slowing s/s • Physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and support groups • Assistive devices, such as wheelchairs, bed lifts • A planned exercise program • A healthy lifestyle, with good nutrition and enough rest and relaxation • Avoiding fatigue, stress, temperature extremes, and illness • Changes in what you eat or drink if there are swallowing problems

Neuritis • Neuritis is a medical condition characterized by inflammation in a nerve or a portion of the nervous system. • There are two primary types: • optic and peripheral.

symptoms • Optic neuritis is generally caused by viral or bacterial infection. It's an inflammation of the optic nerve. It can cause an individual to experience partial or complete loss of vision. This is usually either because the inflammation destroys the myelin sheath, the insulating layer that covers the nerve, or because the axons of the nerve are damaged from the swelling.

A person afflicted with this condition often feels pain when attempting to move the eye. In addition, he or she often has difficulty identifying colors with the affected eye, though he or she may not realize it until covering the healthy eye. • Normal vision normally returns when the infection clears.

With peripheral neuritis damage occurs to a nerve within the peripheral nervous system. Itcan be caused by disease or illness, but is not typically caused directly by bacteria or viruses. Instead, afflictions such as AIDS, diabetes, seizures, alcoholism, and nutritional deficiencies are common causes.

Cerebral Vascular Accident • AKA a “stroke” or “CVA” • Interruption of blood and O2 to brain • Tissue death • Thirdleading cause of death in the USA

HEART DISEASE SMOKING FAMILY HISTORY Risk Factors HYPERTENSION

90% caused by blood clots • Clots lodge in carotid arteries, blocking the flow of blood to the brain • 10% caused by ruptured blood vessels in the brain

Hemiplegia on opposite side of the body • Sudden, severe headache • Dizziness • Sudden loss of vision in one eye • Aphasia • Dysphasia • Coma • Possible death

Treatment • Get to the hospital immediately!! • CT done to determine etiology • If it is caused by a clot, treatment aimed at dissolving the clot.

STOP SMOKING Prevention Exercise CONTROL HYPERTENSION If TIAs – i aspirin qd LOSE WEIGHT

Paralysis • Paralysis is the loss of muscle function in part of your body. It happens when something goes wrong with the way messages pass between your brain and muscles. • Paralysis can be complete or partial. It can occur on one or both sides of your body. • Paralysis of the lower half of your body, including both legs, is called paraplegia. Paralysis of the arms and legs is quadriplegia.

Most paralysis is due to: • strokes • spinal cord injury • broken neck

Poliomyelitis • Poliomyelitis (polio) is a highly infectious viral disease, which mainly affects young children. The virus is transmitted through contaminated food and water, and multiplies in the intestine, from where it can invade the nervous system. Many infected people have no symptoms, but do excrete the virus in their feces, transmitting infection to others.

Initial symptoms of polio include: • fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck, and pain in the limbs. • In a small proportion of cases, the disease causes paralysis, which is often permanent. • Polio can only be prevented by immunization.

Parkinson's Disease • Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects your movement. • It develops gradually, sometimes starting with a barely noticeable tremor in just one hand. • But while tremors may be the most well-known sign of Parkinson's disease, the disorder also commonly causes stiffness or slowing of movement.

Risk Factors: • Age is the largest risk factor for the development of Parkinson's disease. Most are older than 60 years of age. • Men are affected about 1.5 to 2 times more often than women. • family history • Head trauma, illness, or exposure to environmental toxins such as pesticides and herbicides may be a risk factor.

Two other classic symptoms: • Pill rolling- • Shuffle gait-

Treatment • There is currently no treatment to cure Parkinson's disease. • Therapies are designed to increase the amount of dopamine in the brain - meds. • An alternative approach currently being explored is the use of dopamine-producing cells derived from stem cells.

Spinal Cord injury: • A spinal cord injury usually begins with a sudden, traumatic blow to the spine that fractures or dislocates vertebrae. Most injuries to the spinal cord don't completely sever it. Instead, an injury is more likely to cause fractures and compression of the vertebrae, which then crush and destroy axons. Some injuries will allow almost complete recovery. Others will result in complete paralysis.

Is there any treatment? • Unfortunately, there's no way to reverse damage to the spinal cord. But, researchers are working on new treatments, including prostheses and medications that promote nerve cell regeneration or improve the function of the nerves that remain after a spinal cord injury. • In the meantime, spinal cord injury treatment focuses on preventing further injury and empowering people with a spinal cord injury to return to an active and productive life

Modern wheelchairs.. Some wheelchairs can even climb stairs, travel over rough terrain and elevate a seated passenger to eye level to reach high places without help. • Computer adaptations.. Computer adaptations range from simple to complex, such as key guards or voice recognition. • Electronic aids to daily living.Devices can be turned on or off by switch or voice-controlled and computer-based remotes. • Robotic gait training. This emerging technology is used for retraining walking ability after spinal cord injury. • Prognosis and recoveryRecovery, if it occurs, typically starts a week to six months after an injury. • http://www.streetsie.com/spinal-cord-injury/

West Nile Virus • West Nile Virus (WNV) is a potentially serious illness that can attack the nervous system of animals and humans. The virus interferes with normal central nervous system functioning and causes inflammation of brain tissue.

What are the Symptoms? • About 80% of people who are infected with WNV will not display any symptoms. • About 20% of people who become infected with WNV have mild symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting and possibly swollen lymph glands or a skin rash. Symptoms can last a few days or several weeks.

symptoms • Less than 1% (1 out 150 people) infected with WNV will develop severe illness. Symptoms include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, disorientation, convulsions, muscle weakness and vision loss. In rare cases, WNV can lead to paralysis, coma, or death.

Treatment Mild symptoms of West Nile Virus usually resolve on their own. If you experience signs or symptoms of serious infection, seek medical attention right away. A serious West Nile virus infection generally requires hospitalization

THAT’S ALL!!!! THAT’S ALL!!!!

Disorders of the Nervous System