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Patho
Module 17 - headache and stroke
46
Nursing
Undergraduate 3
02/25/2012

Additional Nursing Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term

Absence Seizures

 

Definition

No aura or postictal phase

complete LOC

may stare into space or appear to be day-dreaming

small rhythmic muscle jerks

+/- uncontrolled lip smacking or eye blinking

immediately returns to normal activity when sz ends

no memory of sz

occurs mainly in children under 4 yo to adolescence

less than 30 seconds

Term
Abortive therapy
Definition
treatment that is intended to stop a medical condition from progressing any further. A medication taken at the earliest signs of a disease, such as at the very symptoms of a migraine headache, is an abortive therapy
Term
Atonic seizure
Definition

drop attack

abrupt loss of muscle tone

sudden split second complete loss of muscle tone

brief LOC

short postictal

usually in children with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome

Term
Aura
Definition
a partial sz experienced as a peculiar sensation preceding the onset of generalized sz that may take the form of gustatory, visual, or auditory experience or a feeling of dizziness, numbness, or just a "funny feeling"
Term
Automatisms
Definition
the moving or functioning without conscious control that occurs either independently of external stimuli or under the influence of external stimuli
Term
Brudzinski's sign
Definition

knees and hips flex in response to passive flexion of the neck

 

due to irritation around roots of lumbar region

Term
Clonic seizures
Definition
alternating contraction and relaxation of major muscle groups that are relatively symmetric, bilateral, synchronous, semi-rhythmic jerking of upper and lower extremities
increase in amplitude, decrease in frequency as seizure progresses
Term
Cluster Headache
Definition

most painful primary headache

M:F 6:1

Peak incidence in 40-50 yo men

1st degree relatives have 5-18 times greater risk of developing cluster HA

unilateral

Term
Complex partial seizure
Definition

LOC

usually affect the temporal lobe

automatisms (lip smacking, clapping)

May have deja vu

Jamais Vu: very familiar things become unrecognizable

patient is conscious but has no memory of actions during sz

 

Term
Convulsive status
Definition
producing a convulsion
Term
Deja Vu
Definition
a feeling that new places and events seem familiar or as if they have happened before during a simple partial seizure
Term
Drop attacks
Definition

abrupt loss of muscle tone - inability to sit or stand

 

 

Term
Encephalitis
Definition
inflammation of the brain
Term
Encephalomyelitis
Definition
concurrent inflammation of the brain and spinal cord
Term
Febrile Seizures
Definition

Occur between three months and five years of age

associated with fever, but without evidence of intracranial infection or defined cause

 

Term
GABA- glutamate relationship
Definition
decreased GABAergic inhibition and increased glutamatergic excitiation
Term
Generalized Seizures
Definition

begin with epileptiform activity over the entire cortex and affect both cerebral hemispheres

LOC

Absence seizure

Atonic Seizure

Myoclonic

tonic-clonic seizure

Term
Grand Mal Seizure
Definition
Tonic Clonic Seizure
Term
Ictus
Definition
the period of seizure activity
Term
Jacksonian Seizure
Definition
a focal seizure that successively involves adajacent motor parts on one side of the body during a seizure as it involves progression of the electrical seizure avtivity of the seizure in the brain
Term
Jamais Vu
Definition
familiar or well known things or places may suddenly seem unfamiliar
Term
Kernig's Sign
Definition
severe stiffness of the hamstrings causes an inability to straighten the leg when the hip is flexed to 90 degrees
Term
Meningismus
Definition
stiffness of the neck due to inflammation of membranes covering spinal cord or brain
Term
Meningitis
Definition
inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord and the CSF
Term
Meningocele
Definition
a protrusion of the membranes that cover the spine and part of the spinal cord through a bone defect in the vertebral column
Term
Myelomeningocele
Definition

the most severe type of spina bifida. Herniation of the spinal cord + meninges + spinal fluid into the dorsal dural sac

 

Term
Migraine HA
Definition

onset often in teens; peak between 35-45 yo

Females > males

> 70% have family history

vascular HA

unilateral

throbbing or pulsatile pain

Term
Myelitis
Definition
inflammation of the spinal cord
Term
Myoclonic Seizures
Definition

single or repetitive jerking motions

No LOC

infants and young children

bilateral jerking of muscles generalized or confined to face, trunk, one or more extremities

increase in amplitude, decrease in frequency as sz progressess

 

Clonic: alternating contraction and relaxation of major muscle groups that are relatively symmetric, bilateral, synchronous, semi-rhythmic jerking of upper and lower extremities

Term
Non-convulsive
Definition
someone who is paralysed and not showing outward signs of a seizure
Term
Partial Seizure
Definition

begin in a specific part of the brain (cortex)

simple partial and complex partial seizures

 

Term
Petit mal Seizure
Definition
absence seizure
Term
Post ictal phase
Definition

phase after the seizure during which patient may be conscious but confused and tired

can last several minutes to hours

may be lethargic and may not remember the seizure

may talk but will not remember sz or events thereafter

Term

Preventative/prophylactic treatment

 

Definition
The institution of measures to protect a person from a disease to which he or she has been, or may be, exposed. Also called preventive treatment
Term
Primary HA
Definition

migraine headache

tension-type headache

cluster headache and trigeminal autonomic cephalagias

other Primary ha: stabbing, cough, exertional, and associated with sexual activity

Term
Provoked seizure
Definition

(secondary)

caused by identifiable transcient disturbance including:

organ failure, electrolyte imbalance, medications or med withdrawal, encephalopathy

 

Term
Pyogenic meningitis
Definition

Also called acute bacterial meningitis- bacteria is present in the inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord and CSF

 

Term
Secondary Headache
Definition

head or neck trauma

cranial or cervical vascular disorders

nonvascular intracranial disorders

substance use or their withdrawal

infection

bleeding

disorders of cranial, facial, or sensory organ structures

psychiatric disorders

Term
seizure
Definition
an excessive or abnormal sudden, high frequency discharge of the brain's neurons, with or without clinical motor manifestations
Term
simple partial seizure
Definition

no loss of consciousness

 

Term
spina bifida occulta
Definition

often hidden spina bifida

a small gap may exist in one or more of the vertebrae (due to failure of posterior vertebral lamina fuse with the resultant defect covered by a layer of skin), but the spinal cord and tissues are normal

Term
status epilepicus
Definition
a continuous seizure lasting >30 minutes or repeating seizures that occur so rapidly that the patient does not recover consciousness between them
Term
tension type headache
Definition

most common primary ha

episodic tension type ha < 15 attacks a month

chronic tension type ha > 15 attacks a month

Term
tonic seizures
Definition

muscle contraction with increased muscle tone

result in stiffening of muscle groups

body stiffens in flexor or extensor posturing

may be accompained by a guttural cry as air is forced out of closed vocal cords

Term
Tonic-clonic seizures
Definition

proceded by aura

Tonic phase= stiffening of muscles

LOC

rigidity

lasts 10-30 seconds

may make screaming or crying sounds

breathing may be impaired - cyanosis

bowel/bladder incontinence

 

Clonic phase- extremities twitch and jerk rhythmically

postictal with slow return to consciousness with flaccid muscles

tonic phase 10-15 seconds follwed by clonic phase (1-2 minutes)

sz usually lasts 3-5 minutes

respirations may be arrested and cyanosis can occur

may be apenic until end of clonic phase marked by a deep inspiration

postictal unpresponsiveness until RAS begins to function again

 

Term
spina bifida
Definition
a congenital neural tube defect in which part of the meninges or spinal cord protrudes through the spinal column, often resulting in neurological impairment.
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