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Neuroglossary
Terms used in brain injury, spinal cord injury and other neurotrauma treatment and rehabilitation.
abducens nerve - Cranial Nerve VI. Supplies lateral rectus, an extrinsic muscle of the eye.
abduction - Movement of a limb away from the midline of the body. Clap your hands together and then move them away from each other; this is abduction. The opposite of abduction is adduction
abcess - A localized collection of pus in a cavity, formed by the disintegration of tissues.
absence epilepsy - A type of epilepsy that occurs especially in children and is manifested by a sudden momentary loss of cosciousness with minimal motor manifestations.
acetylcholine - Reversible acetic acid ester of choline that serves as a neurotransmitter at the myoneural junction, in parasympathetic ganglia, and at parasympathetic nerve endings.
acoustic nerve - The eighth cranial nerve or nervi vestibulocochlearis, which consists of two sets of fibers, the pars vestibularis nervi octavi and the pars cochlear nervi octavi. It connects to the brain by corresponding roots.
acoustic neuroma - A tumor or new growth which involves the acoustic division of the eighth cranial nere, largely made up of nerve cells and nerve fibers.
active myofascial trigger point - Particular spots on the body where a muscle or its fascia is easily irritated and symptomatic in terms of pain.
active range of motion - Degree of movement of a segment of a joint. In testing, the movement should be voluntary.
acute - Of recent onset (hours, days, or a few weeks).
acute care - Care provided during the very early stages following injury, including surgery and intensive care. Focus is on the patient becoming medically stable.
acute rehabilitation program - Primary emphasis on the early rehabilitation phase which usually begins as soon as a person is medically stable. The program is designed to be comprehensive and based in a medical facility with a typical length of stay of 2-3 months. Treatment is provided by an identifiable team in a designated unit.
ADL - Activities of daily living. Routine activities carried out for personal hygiene and health (including bathing, dressing feeding) and for operating a household.
adduction - Describes the movement of a limb toward or beyond the midline of the body. Adduction is illustrated by moving the hands apart and then clapping them together or crossing them at the arms. Adduction is the opposite of abduction.
adipose tissue - Fatty tissue.
adjustment disorder - A maladaptive reaction to an identifiable psychological stressor. May be severe, but is usually resolved by therapeutic intervention or by the passage of time.
affect - The emotional tone characteristic of each person's presentation. Affect is depressed in dysthymia, elevated in elation. Affect may be described as "flat", "blunted", or "inappropriate" to the situation.
afferent - Sensory pathway proceeding toward the central nervous sysem from the peripheral receptor organs.
agnosia - A defect in the ability to recognize and intepret compex stimuli caused by lesion in the angular gyrus.
agraphia - Inability to write.
akinetic mutism - Also known as a persistent vegetative state. The patient neither moves or speaks with volition and is unaware of internal or external stimuli. Such persons may appear to be awake but are not truly conscious.
akinetic seizure - A momentary loss of muscle tone throughout the body resulting in falls.
alar ligament - Ligaments that limit the rotation of the head. Two strong bands that pass from the posterolateral part of the tip of the dens of the axis upward and laterally to the condyles of the occipital bone.
alexia - Inability to read, usually due to lesions of the visual cortex.
alpha rhythm - A uniform rhythm of brain waves in the normal eletroencephalogram, with an average frequency of about 8 to 13 cps.
Alzheimer's disease - Pre-senile or senile dementia with progressive mental impairment. Characterized pathologically by the presence of excessive neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques.
amaurosis fugax - Temporary impairment or loss of vision (blindness) in one eye due to impairment of blood supply through the internal cartoid artery of the ophthalmic artery.
amnesia - A defect in memory, usually for a period of time or certain events. Anterograde amnesia is not remembering from the point of stress forward; retrograde amnesia is being unaware of events happening before the point of stress.
amphiarthrosis - Refers to the joints on both sides. Classified by degree of movement, they are slightly movable, allowing a limited amount of motion. (See synarthrosis an diarthrosis.)
amygdaloid body - A small gray mass of several small nuclei located in the roof of the terminal part of the inferior horn of the lateral ventricle.
anaplasia - A characteristic of tumor tissue in which there is a loss of differentiation of cells (dedifferentiation), of their orientation to one another, and to their axial framework and relationship to blood vessels. The degree of anaplasia is related to the malignancy of the tumor.
anatomical position - The standing body with head facing forward, arms at the sides and palms of the hands facing frontward, feet together with the toes also directed forward. In this position, the words posterior, anterior, lateral, medial, etc. describe the body parts as they relate to each other and to the axis of the body.
aneurysm - A sac (or bulging) artery or vein caused by dilatation of the walls of the vessel.
angiography - A method of following and recording the blood supply of a given organ by x-ray recordng of a radio-opaque dye injected into an artery.
ankylosis - A condition that is one of immobility and solidification of joints because of disease, injury, or a surgical procedure.
annulus - Describes a ring, or a ringlike or circular structure.
annulus fibrosus - The outermost, circumferential, ringlike portion of the intervertebral disc composed of fibrocartilage and fibrous tissue.
anomia - The inability to name objects caused by aberrant brain function.
anosmia - Loss of the sense of smell.
antagonists - Portions of muscles or whole muscles that, due to the way they are attached anatomically, contribute force to oppose each other.
antalgic gait - Counteracting or avoiding pain as a posture or gait assumed so as to lessen pain.
anterior - Before or toward the front.
anterior arch fracture - A fracture caused by hyperextension. The atlanto-axial facet holds firm, and the frontal arch of the atlas touches the odontoid bone.
anterior cerebral artery - An artery originating from the internal carotid artery serving principally the frontal lobe, corpus collosum olfactory and optic tracts. Branches include the anterior communicating, ganglionic, commissural, and hemispheral arteries.
anterior commissure - A band of fibers that passes transversely through the lamina terminalis and connects the basal portions of the two cerebral hemispheres.
anterior communicating artery - An artery that originates from the anterior cerebral artery, supplies the caudate nucleus, and helps form the anterior part of the circle of Willis.
anterior cord syndrome - A condition that brings complete motor paralysis, yet with the ability to feel some sensations and body perception in the legs and feet, without sharp-dull discrimination.
anterior longitudinal ligament - Strong, broad, fibrous ligament that covers and connects the frontal aspects of the vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs. It goes from the sacrumﾒs pelvic surface to the forward raised eminence on C1 (atlas) and the occipital bone of the skull, frontal to the large opening at the base of the skull, through which the spinal cord enters into the cranial cavity (foramen magnum). It maintains the stability of the joints between the vertebral bodies and helps prevent hyperextension of the vertebral column.
anterolisthesis - A condition of spondylolisthesis in which the vertebral slippage is anterior.
anticholinergic drugs - Drugs which block the passage of nerve impulses through the parasympathetic nerves.
aphasia (or dysphasia) - Loss of the ability to express oneself and/or to understand language. The inability to speak (expressive asphasia or dysphasia) or comprehend (receptive aphasia or dysphasia) written and/or spoken language due to cerebral disorder. Caused by damage to brain cells rather than deficits in speech or hearing organs.
aphonia (dysphonia) - Loss of voice due to disorder of the larynx or its neural connection.
aponeuroses - Ribbonlike tendinous expansions connecting muscles with the parts that are moving.
apophyseal joints - Articular facets. See zygapophyseal joints.
apophysis - Refers to any outgrowth or swelling, especially bony expansions that have never been entirely separated from the bones of which they are parts. These are processes, tubercles, or other such protuberances.
apraxia - The inability to carry out correct voluntary movement commanded for a specific situation, although the movement may be performed under other circumstances. Results from disassociation of parts of the cerebrum and is often associated with parietallobe lesion.
aqueduct of sylvius (cerebral aqueduct) - A narrow canal, about three-quarters of an inch long, that connects the third and fourth ventricles.
arachnoid - The middle layer of the meninges of the brain; so-named ("like a cobweb") because of its delicate network of tissue.
arachnoid mater - A thin and rather insubstantial membrane covering of the brain and spinal cord lying between the dura mater and the pia mater.
arachnoid villus - A microscopic projection of the arachnoid tissue into the venous sinuses. Arachnoid villus absorb CSF.
arcuate fasciculus - A bundle of fibers which connects the superior and middle frontal convoltions with the temporal lobe and temporal pole.
argonists - Muscles, or portions of muscles, anatomically attached so that upon contraction, the developing forces supplement each other.
arteriosclerosis - A condition marked by loss of elasticity thickening, and hardening of the arteries.
arteriovenous - Both arterial and venous; pertaining to or affecting an artery and a vein.
arteriorvenous malformation - An abnormal formation of arteries and veins. It may be only a small tangle of vessels or a large collection of abnormal vessels occupying a large area.
artery - A blood vessel that carries oxygenated blood.
arthritis - Inflammation of a joint, a general term for many specific forms of arthritis.
arthro- - Combined with other words, indicates a relationship to a joint or joints.
arthrodesis - Describes the surgical fixation of a joint. By encouraging bone cells to multiply, the procedure achieves fusion of the joint surfaces. It is also called artificial ankylosis. A spinal fusion is an arthrodesis of the spine.
arthroscopy - Diagnostic and surgical technique in which a small fiber-optic scope is used to look into a joint.
arthrosis - Has to do with a joint, an articulation or a disease of a joint.
arthrosis deformans - Describes rheumatoid arthritis.
articular - Of or relating to a joint or joints.
articular capsule - Type of capsule that lines the synovial cavity in the parts of the joint that are not cartilage. It permits a substantial amount of movement.
articular cartilage - This smooth cartilage is hyaline cartilage. It caps the bones facing the synovial cavity.
articular disc (fibrocartilage) - Disc that accomplishes three things. It absorbs the shocks in a joint; it evens out the joint surfaces; and it enables two simultaneous movements to take place.
articular processes - Four bony joints projecting out from where the pedicles and laminae join. They jut out both above and below, and each bony projection has a facet joint. These facet joint junctures between the upper surface and lower surface of vertebrae help in preventing forward movement of an upper vertebra on a lower one, especially in the thoracic and lumbar areas. The articular facets permit some flexion and extension as well as non-uniform amounts of lateral flexion and rotation. Also called zygapophyses.
articulation - Another word for joint; refers to the place where bones or cartilages or bones and cartilages meet.
association fibers - Fibers which connect various cortical portions of the same cerebral hemisphere.
astereognosis - The inability to discriminate shape, texture, weight, and size of objects. Often occurs with parietal lobe lesion.
astrocytes - Neurological cell of ectodermal origin characterized by fibrous, protoplasmic, or plasmatofibrous processes. Collectively, such cells are called astroglia.
astrocytoma - An intrinsic tumor of the brain that arises from star-shaped cells (astrocytes) of the neuroglia.
astroglia - he astrocytes, thought of as tissue. Previously called microglia.
ataxia - A problem of muscle coordination not due to apraxia, weakness, rigidity, spasticity or sensory loss. Incoordination of movement. May be due to brain disease in cerebellum or sensory pathways and can be part of a drug-induced movement disorder.
atherosclerosis - A degenerative process of arteries in which there are fatty deposits and degeneration of the inner lining of the vessel which, in turn, may lead to narrowing of the lumen of the vessel.
athetosis - Involuntary, purposeless, disordered movements, caused by a brain lesion, in which there is a constant recurrence of slow writhing movements of the hands and feet.
atlanto-axial - Pertaining to the atlas and the axis.
atlanto-occipital - Pertaining to the occiput and the atlas.
atlas - The first cervical vertebra, which unites by way of a joint above, with the occipital bone of the skull, and below, with the axis (C2), upon which it rotates. It is a ring-shaped bone and supports the skull. It has no spinous process or body but consists of arches above and arches below, each of which has a rounded elevation (tubercle) and lumps on the sides (lateral mass).
atrophy - A wasting away or decrease in size of a cell, tissue, organ, or part of the body due to lack of nourishment.
attenuation - Made thin, weak, or fine, as in strength, value, or virulence.
audiometry - A method of determining and quantifying the ability to hear a variety and range of pure tones. Hearing is described as a function of the number or cycles per second (CPS or hertz) that can be detected at a particular intensity (decibels).
auditory brain stem evoked potentials (ABP) - A method of recording sounds as they are integrated and processed in the brain stem.
auditory verbal dysgnosia - An aphasic deficit characterized by impairment of ability to understand the symbolic significance of verbal communication through the auditory avenue (loss of auditory-verbal comprehension).
aura - A period of seizure when sensation is abnormal.
autoimmune disorders - Impairment of the bodily processes by which immunization is effected.
autonomic - Refers to functions over which we have no control, such as respiration, digestion, and circulation.
autonomic nervous system (ANS) - Component of the central nervous system consisting of two divisions, sympathetic and parasympathetic. The ANS regulates and controls (largely) involuntary functions such as digestion, cardiac functioning, etc. Involves the limbic system of the brain.
avulsion - Shows that part of the structure has been torn away.
axial - Pertains to the axis of a form or part. In the body, it relates to the trunk, which is composed of the head, neck, thorax, abdomen, and pelvis.
axial skeleton - Skeleton part that makes up the longitudinal axis of the body. Within its area is the skull, the vertebral column, the sternum, and the ribs.
axial view - The overhead view, or ﾓhelicopter view,ﾔ as spoken of in imaging.
axilla - The armpit area, a small pyramid-shaped space between the upper and side part of the chest to the middle side of the arm. Besides the armpit, it includes pertinent vessels, the brachial plexus of nerves, a large number of lymph nodes, and fat and areolar tissue. Also called armpit, fossa axillaries, and axillary space.
axis - Line around which certain parts of the body are arranged; also refers to the second cervical vertebra, C2. This vertebra, known as epistropheus, odontoid vertebra, and vertebra ventata, is the strongest of the cervical vertebrae. It is next to the atlas, C1, which rotates on its two large flat bearing surfaces, the upper articular facets. Projecting above from its body is the odontoid process or dens, which is its most noticeable characteristic. The dens is held in place by the transverse ligament of the atlas, and keeps the atlas from being displaced horizontally. When you feel the back-facing groove of the neck, the nuchal furrow, the first spinous process to be felt is the large bifid spinous process.
axon - The main or core nerve fiber which generally conducts impulses away from the cell body.
axon terminals - Ends of branched-out neurons, where impulses are transmitted to other nerve cells or to organs that react to the signals transmitted.
axonotmesis - The nerve is anatomically intact, but there is a complete interruption of all types of nerve fibers with essentially complete motor and sensory loss. The nerve has to recover by axonal regeneration and this starts at the cell body, near or in the spinal column, and progresses outward at approximately 1 mm per day. A nerve may not always have only one type of injury. It is possible to have combined types of injuries within a given nerve.
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