Neurologic Disorders

• CN 1: Olfactory (sense and smell)
• CN 2: Optic (vital to vision and visual fields and in conjunction with CN 3, pupillary reaction)
• CN 3: Occulomotor (pupillary reaction, movement of eye with CN 4 and 6)
• CN 4: Trochlear
• CN 5: Trigeminal (sensations-temperature, pain, and tactile) and corneal reflexes
• CN 6: Abducens (abduction and movement of eyeball)
• CN 7: facial movement
• CN 8: hearing and balance
• CN 9: Glossopharyngeal (tongue and throat movement)
• CN 10: Vagus
• CN 11: Accessory and spinal root of the accessory
• CN 12: Hypoglossal (movement and protrusion of the tongue)

Acute paralysis of CN 7.

Corticosteriod therapy can limit length and severity of the paralysis. Supportive therapy to help avoid ocular and oral injury.

• 1. migraine
• 2. tension-type
• 3. cluster

• Lasts 30 minutes to 7 days with more than 2 characteristics:
• pressing, nonpulsatile pain
• mild to moderate in intensity
• usually bilateral location
• notation 0-1 of the following (>1 suggests migraines): nausea, photophobia, and phonophobia

• Last 30 minutes to 7 days with more than 2 characteristics:
• usually unilateral location, although occasionally bilateral
• pulsating quality, moderate to severe in intensity
• aggravation by normal activity
• during headache, greater than 1 of the following: nausea and/or vomiting, photophobia, and phonophobia

• Migraine-type headache occurs with or after aura
• focal dysfunction of cerebral cortex or brainstem causes greater than 1 aura symptom develops over 4 minutes or greater than 2 symptoms occur in succession
• no aura symptom should last greater than 1 hour

• Tendency of headache to occur daily in groups or clusters
• Clusters usually lasts several weeks to months, then disappear for months to years
• Usually occur at characteristics times of year such as vernal and autumnal equinox, with 1-8 episodes per day, at the same time of day. Common time 1 hour into sleep
• Headache location is often located behind one eye with a steady, intense, severe pain in a crescendo pattern lasting 15 mins to 3 hours, with most in the range of 30-45 mins.

• history of previous identical headaches
• intact cognition
• supple neck
• normal neurologic examination results
• improvement in symptoms while under observation and treatment

• Systemic symptoms: fever, weight loss, or secondary headache risk factors
• Neurologic signs & symptoms: confusion, impaired alertness or consciousness
• Onset: sudden, abrupt, or split-second
• Older: new onset and progressive headache, especially in adult older than 50
• Previous headache and history: first headache, different headache, change in attack frequency, severity, or clinical features

• acetaminophen
• NSAIDS
• combination products (butalbital with acetaminophen)
• prophylactic therapies

• reduction of triggers (alcohol & tobacco)
• prophylactic therapy
• abortive therapy (triptans, high-dose NSAIDS, and high flow oxygen)

abortive therapy (oral, parenteral, nasal spray, suppository)

• Triptans: selective serotonin receptor agonists and work at the 5-HT1D serotonin receptor site, allowing an increase uptake of serotonin.
• Ergotamines: act as 5-HT1A and 5 HT1D receptor agonists and do not alter cerebral blood flow.
• NSAIDS: inhibit prostaglandin and leukotriene synthesis and are most helpful when used at the first sign of headache.
• Fioricet: caffeine enhances the analgesic properties of acetaminophen, butalbitals barbiturate action enhances select neurotransmitter action.
• Midrin: multidrug product that includes a vasoconstrictor, analgesic, and relaxant.
• Excedrin Migraine: aspirin, acetaminophen, and caffeine combination. Can cause rebound headaches.
• Neuroleptics: may be used as adjuncts in migraine headache therapy, because they help control nausea and vomiting.
• Opioids: migraine rescue.

An infection of the meninges, CSF, and ventricles. It can be bacterial (pyogenic) or viral (aseptic).

Occurs via hematogenous spread. Organisms can enter the meninges through the bloodstream from other parts of the body. It also can be from an infection such as otitis media or bacterial rhinosinusitis. It is contagious through droplets.

• Presence of Kernig signs(lying supine and the hip flexed at 90 degrees; positive sign when extension of knee from this position elicits resistance or pain in the lower back or posterior thigh) and Brudzinki signs (passive neck flexion in a supine; results in flexion of the knees and hips)
• Headache
• Fever
• nuchal rigidity
• stiff neck
• Less common: seizures, vomiting, and altered consciousness

• Lumbar puncture with CSF
• CT or MRI of the head before LP

Rifampin, ciprofloxacin, and ceftriaxone.

• Supportive care
• Anti-infective agents
• Ceftriaxone with Vancomycin
• Acyclovir

Focal neurologic dysfunction, with symptoms occurring acutely, worsening over a few days, and lasting weeks, followed by a period of partial to full resolution. MS is characterized by exacerbation and remission.

• weakness or numbness of limb
• monocular visual loss
• diplopia
• vertigo
• facial weakness or numbness
• sphincter disturbances
• ataxia
• nystagmus

• Relapsing-remitting MS-episodes resolve with good neurologic function between exacerbations and minimal to no accumulative defects
• Chronic progressive MS-episodes do not fully resolve and there are accumulative defects

• High-dose corticosteroids
• Maintenance-Betaseron or Avonex
• Immunosuppressive therapy-methotrexate or mitoxantrone

Slowly progressive movement disorder that is largely caused by an alteration in dopamine-containing neurons of the pars compacta of the substantia nigra.

• Clinical evaluation
• Six cardinal signs: tremor at rest, rigidity, bradykinesia, flexed posture, loss of postural reflexes, and masklike facies

• Mirapex
• Requip
• Levodopa

• Absence: blank staring lasting 3-50 seconds accompanied by impaired level of consciouness
• Myoclonic: awake state or momentary loss of consciousness with abnormal motor behavior lasting seconds to minutes; one or more muscle groups causing brief jerking contractions of the limbs and trunk, occasionally flinging patient
• Tonic-clonic: rigid extension of arms and legs followed by sudden jerking movements with loss of consciousness; bowel and bladder incontinence common with postictal confusion
• Simple partial or focal: awake state with abnormal motor, sensory, autonomic, or psychic behavior; movement can affect any part of body, localized or generalized
• Complex partial: aura characterized by unusual sense of smell or taste, visual or auditory hallucinations, image or sound, stomach upset; followed by vague stare and facial movements, muscle contraction and relaxation, and autonomic signs; can progress to loss of consciousness

• Phenytoin
• Carbamazepine
• Clonazepam
• Ethosuximide
• Valproic acid
• Gabapentin
• Lamotrigine
• Topiramate

an acute neurologic even in which all signs and symptoms, including numbness, weakness, and flaccidity, as well as visual changes, ataxia, or dysarthria, resolve usually within minutes but certainly by 24 hours after onset

Condition in which the patient exhibits an acute onset, over hours to a few days, of reduced ability to maintain attention to external stimuli and appropriately shift attention to new stimuli. Resulting in disorganized thinking.

• Drugs
• Emotional
• Low PO2
• Infection
• Retention of urine or feces
• Ictal or postictal state
• Undernutrition
• Metabolic
• Subdural hematoma