Group+4

=Research and discuss several Nervous system disorders. At a minimum you need to address the following issues:=


 * Cerebral Palsy || Meningitis || Stroke || Polio ||  ||

You should be sure to discuss symptoms, causes and any treatments or cures. == = = = = =__ CEREBRAL PALSY __=

=
Cerebral Palsy is caused by injuries or abnormalities of the brain. The problems usually happen while the baby is still in the womb or the first 2 years of life, while the brain is still developing. Premature infants have a slightly higher risk of developing cerebral palsy.======

=Definition= Cerebral palsy is a disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture that is caused by injury or abnormal development in the immature brain, most often before birth. Signs and symptoms appear during infancy or preschool years. =**Symptoms**=
 * Variations in muscle tone — either too stiff or too floppy
 * Stiff muscles and exaggerated reflexes (spasticity)
 * Stiff muscles with normal reflexes (rigidity)
 * Lack of muscle coordination (ataxia)
 * Tremors or involuntary movements
 * Slow, writhing movements (athetosis)
 * Delays in reaching motor skills milestones, such as pushing up on arms, sitting up alone or crawling
 * Favoring one side of the body, such as reaching with only one hand or dragging a leg while crawling
 * Difficulty walking, such as walking on toes, a crouched gait, a scissors-like gait with knees crossing or a wide gait
 * Excessive drooling or difficulty with swallowing
 * Difficulty with sucking or eating
 * Delays in speech development or difficulty speaking
 * Difficulty with precise motions, such as picking up a crayon or spoon
 * Other neurological problems**
 * Difficulty with vision and hearing
 * Intellectual disabilities or mental retardation
 * Seizures
 * Abnormal touch or pain perceptions
 * Dental problems
 * Urinary incontinence

=Causes= Cerebral palsy is caused by an abnormality or disruption in brain development.
 * **Random mutations** in genes that control brain development
 * **Maternal infections** that affect the developing fetus
 * **Fetal stroke,** a disruption of blood supply to the developing brain
 * **Lack of oxygen** to the brain (asphyxia) related to difficult labor or delivery
 * **Infant infections** that cause inflammation in or around the brain
 * **Traumatic head injury** to an infant from a motor vehicle accident, fall or child abuse

These tests may identify:
 * Vision impairment
 * Hearing impairment
 * Speech delays or impairments
 * Intellectual disabilities or mental retardation
 * Other developmental delays

= __**MENINGITIS**__ = =Definition= Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes (meninges) surrounding your brain and spinal cord, usually due to the spread of an infection. The swelling associated with meningitis often triggers the "hallmark" signs and symptoms of this condition, including headache, fever and a stiff neck in anyone over the age of 2.

=Symptoms= Infants with meningitis may be difficult to comfort, and may even cry harder when picked up. =Causes=
 * High fever
 * Severe headache that isn't easily confused with other types of headache
 * Stiff neck
 * Vomiting or nausea with headache
 * Confusion or difficulty concentrating — in the very young, this may appear as inability to maintain eye contact
 * Seizures
 * Sleepiness or difficulty waking up
 * Sensitivity to light
 * Lack of interest in drinking and eating
 * Skin rash in some cases, such as in viral or meningococcal meningitis
 * Signs in newborn**
 * High fever
 * Constant crying
 * Excessive sleepiness or irritability
 * Inactivity or sluggishness
 * Poor feeding
 * A bulge in the soft spot on top of a baby's head (fontanel)
 * Stiffness in a baby's body and neck
 * Seizures

Meningitis usually results from a viral infection, but the cause may also be a bacterial infection. Less commonly, a fungal infection may cause meningitis. Because bacterial infections are the most serious and can be life-threatening, identifying the source of the infection is an important part of developing a treatment plan.
 * [[image:http://www.mayoclinic.com/images/image_popup/thumbs/r7_meningitisthu.jpg caption="Illustration showing meningitis" link="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/medical/IM00113"]] || [|Meningitis] ||

=Complications= Other complications may include: = = = __**STROKE**__ = =Definition= A stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of your brain is interrupted or severely reduced, depriving brain tissue of oxygen and food. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. =Symptoms= Watch for these signs and symptoms if you think you or someone else may be having a stroke. Note when signs and symptoms begin, because the length of time they have been present may guide treatment decisions. If you're with someone you suspect is having a stroke, watch the person carefully while waiting for emergency assistance. You may need to: =Causes=
 * Hearing loss
 * Blindness
 * Memory difficulty
 * Loss of speech
 * Learning disabilities
 * Behavior problems
 * Brain damage
 * Paralysis
 * Kidney failure
 * Adrenal gland failure
 * Shock
 * Death
 * **Trouble with walking.** You may stumble or experience sudden dizziness, loss of balance or loss of coordination.
 * **Trouble with speaking and understanding.** You may experience confusion. You may slur your words or be unable to find the right words to explain what is happening to you (aphasia). Try to repeat a simple sentence. If you can't, you may be having a stroke.
 * **Paralysis or numbness on one side of your body or face.** You may develop sudden numbness, weakness or paralysis on one side of your body. Try to raise both your arms over your head at the same time. If one arm begins to fall, you may be having a stroke. Similarly, one side of your mouth may droop when you try to smile.
 * **Trouble with seeing in one or both eyes.** You may suddenly have blurred or blackened vision, or you may see double.
 * **Headache.** A sudden, severe "bolt out of the blue" headache, which may be accompanied by vomiting, dizziness or altered consciousness, may indicate you're having a stroke.
 * Begin mouth-to-mouth resuscitation if the person stops breathing
 * Turn the person's head to the side if vomiting occurs, which can prevent choking
 * Keep the person from eating or drinking
 * [[image:http://www.mayoclinic.com/images/image_popup/thumbs/r7_ischemicstrokethu.jpg caption="Illustration showing ischemic stroke " link="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/medical/IM00074"]] || [|Ischemic stroke] ||
 * **Thrombotic stroke.** This type of stroke occurs when a blood clot (thrombus) forms in one of the arteries that supply blood to your brain. A clot usually forms in areas damaged by atherosclerosis — a disease in which the arteries are clogged by fatty deposits (plaques). This process can occur within one of the two carotid (kuh-ROT-id) arteries of your neck that carry blood to your brain, as well as in other arteries of the neck or brain.
 * **Embolic stroke.** An embolic stroke occurs when a blood clot or other debris forms in a blood vessel away from your brain — commonly in your heart — and is swept through your bloodstream to lodge in narrower brain arteries. This type of blood clot is called an embolus. It's often caused by irregular beating in the heart's two upper chambers (atrial fibrillation). This abnormal heart rhythm can lead to pooling of blood in the heart and the formation of blood clots that travel elsewhere in the body.
 * Hemorrhagic stroke**Hemorrhage is the medical term for bleeding. Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in your brain leaks or ruptures. Brain hemorrhages can result from a number of conditions that affect your blood vessels, including uncontrolled high blood pressure (hypertension) and weak spots in your blood vessel walls (aneurysms). A less common cause of hemorrhage is the rupture of an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) — an abnormal tangle of thin-walled blood vessels, present at birth. There are two types of hemorrhagic stroke:.

=Complications= A stroke can sometimes cause temporary or permanent disabilities, depending on how long the brain suffers a lack of blood flow and which part was affected. Complications may include: As with any brain injury, the success of treating these complications will vary from person to person.
 * **Paralysis or loss of muscle movement.** Sometimes a lack of blood flow to the brain can cause a person to become paralyzed on one side of the body, or lose control of certain muscles, such as those on one side of the face. With physical therapy, you may see improvement in muscle movement or paralysis.
 * **Difficulty talking or swallowing.** A stroke may cause a person to have less control over the way the muscles in the mouth and throat move, making it difficult to talk, swallow or eat. A person may also have a hard time speaking because a stroke has caused aphasia, a condition in which a person has difficulty expressing thoughts through language. Therapy with a speech and language pathologist may improve this disability.
 * **Memory loss or trouble with understanding.** It's common that people who've had a stroke experience some memory loss. Others may develop difficulty making judgments, reasoning and understanding concepts. These complications may improve with rehabilitation therapies.
 * **Pain.** Some people who have a stroke may have pain, numbness or other strange sensations in parts of their bodies affected by stroke. For example, if a stroke causes you to lose feeling in your left arm, you may develop an uncomfortable tingling sensation in that arm. You may also be sensitive to temperature changes, especially extreme cold. This is called central stroke pain or central pain syndrome (CPS). This complication generally develops several weeks after a stroke, and it may improve as more time passes. But because the pain is caused by a problem in the brain instead of a physical injury, there are few medications to treat CPS.
 * **Changes in behavior and self-care.** People who have a stroke may become more withdrawn and less social or more impulsive. They may lose the ability to care for themselves and may need a caretaker to help them with their grooming needs and daily chores.

=Tests and diagnosis= To determine the best treatment for your stroke, your emergency team must figure out what type of stroke you're having and what parts of your brain it's affecting. Other possible causes of your symptoms, such as a brain tumor or a drug reaction, also need to be ruled out. Your doctor may also use some of these tests to determine your risk of stroke.

= __POLIO__ = =Definition= Polio is a contagious viral illness that in its most severe form causes paralysis, difficulty breathing and sometimes death. In the U.S., the last case of naturally occurring polio happened in 1979. Today, despite a concerted global eradication campaign, poliovirus continues to affect children and adults in Afghanistan, India, Nigeria and Pakistan.

=Symptoms=

Although polio can cause paralysis and death, the vast majority of people who are infected with the poliovirus don't become sick and are never aware they've been infected with polio. Signs and symptoms, which generally last one to 10 days, include: Initial signs and symptoms of paralytic polio, such as fever and headache, often mimic those of nonparalytic polio. Within a week, however, signs and symptoms specific to paralytic polio appear, including: The onset of paralysis may be sudden.
 * [[image:http://www.mayoclinic.com/images/image_popup/thumbs/r7_neuronthu.jpg caption="Illustration of a nerve cell (neuron), showing axon and dendrites" link="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/medical/IM02555"]] || [|Nerve cell (neuron)] ||
 * Nonparalytic polio** Some people who develop symptoms from the poliovirus contract nonparalytic polio — a type of polio that doesn't lead to paralysis (abortive polio). This usually causes the same mild, flu-like signs and symptoms typical of other viral illnesses.
 * Fever
 * Sore throat
 * Headache
 * Vomiting
 * Fatigue
 * Back pain or stiffness
 * Neck pain or stiffness
 * Pain or stiffness in the arms or legs
 * Muscle spasms or tenderness
 * Meningitis
 * Paralytic polio** In rare cases, poliovirus infection leads to paralytic polio, the most serious form of the disease. Paralytic polio has several types, based on the part of your body that's affected — your spinal cord (spinal polio), your brainstem (bulbar polio) or both (bulbospinal polio).
 * Loss of reflexes
 * Severe muscle aches or spasms
 * Loose and floppy limbs (flaccid paralysis), often worse on one side of the body
 * Post-polio syndrome** Post-polio syndrome is a cluster of disabling signs and symptoms that affect some people for decades — an average of 25 to 35 years — after they had polio. Common signs and symptoms include:
 * Progressive muscle or joint weakness and pain
 * General fatigue and exhaustion after minimal activity
 * Muscle atrophy
 * Breathing or swallowing problems
 * Sleep-related breathing disorders, such as sleep apnea
 * Decreased tolerance of cold temperatures

=Complications= Paralytic polio can lead to temporary or permanent muscle paralysis, disability, and deformities of the hips, ankles and feet. Although many deformities can be corrected with surgery and physical therapy, these treatments may not be options in developing nations where polio is still endemic. As a result, children who survive polio may spend their lives with severe disabilities.

=Tests and diagnosis= Doctors often recognize polio by symptoms, such as neck and back stiffness, abnormal reflexes, and difficulty swallowing and breathing. To confirm the diagnosis, a sample of throat secretions, stool or cerebrospinal fluid — a colorless fluid that surrounds your brain and spinal cord — is checked for the presence of poliovirus.

=Treatments and drugs= Because no cure for polio exists, the focus is on increasing comfort, speeding recovery and preventing complications. Supportive treatments include:
 * Bed rest
 * Antibiotics for secondary infections (none for poliovirus)
 * Analgesics for pain
 * Portable ventilators to assist breathing
 * Moderate exercise (physical therapy) to prevent deformity and loss of muscle function
 * A nutritious diet

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