Head Injury (Brain Injury) Glossary of Terms

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Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Absorption: Uptake. For example, intestinal absorption is the uptake of food (or other sub...

Airway: The path that air follows to get into and out of the lungs. The mouth and nose are...

Amnesia: An impairment to or lack of memory. Antegrade amnesia refers to a lack of memory ...

Analysis: In psychology, a term for conversation-based therapeutic processes used to gain ...

Aneurysm: A localized widening (dilatation) of an artery, a vein, or the heart. At the poi...

Artery: A vessel that carries blood high in oxygen content away from the heart to the far...

Asymptomatic: Without symptoms. For example, an asymptomatic infection is an infection wit...

Atrophy: A wasting away or diminution. Muscle atrophy is a decrease in muscle mass, often ...

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

Basilar: Located at or near the base of a structure, especially the base of the skull.

Blood clot: A mass of coagulated blood. A blood clot can block a major blood vessel, causi...

Brain: The portion of the central nervous system that is located within the skull. It func...

Brain stem: The stem-like part of the base of the brain that is connected to the spinal co...

Brain swelling: See: Cerebral edema.

Brainstem: The lowest part of the brain which merges with the spinal cord and provides the...

Breathing: The process of respiration, during which air is inhaled into the lungs through ...

Bruise: Injury of the soft tissues that results in breakage of the local capillaries and l...

CDC: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the US agency charged with tracking a...

Cell: The basic structural and functional unit of any living thing. Each cell is a small c...

Cerebral: Of or pertaining to the cerebrum or the brain.

Cerebral aneurysm: A localized widening of a vessel within the brain. See: Berry aneurysm...

Chronic: In medicine, lasting a long time. A chronic condition is one that lasts 3 months ...

Circulation: In medicine, the movement of fluid through the body in a regular or circuitou...

Coma: A state of deep, unarousable unconsciousness. A coma may occur as a result of head t...

Complication: In medicine, an unanticipated problem that arises following, and is a result...

Compress: Cloth or another material applied under pressure to an area of the skin and held...

Computerized tomography: Pictures of structures within the body created by a computer that...

Concussion: A traumatic injury to soft tissue, usually the brain, as a result of a violent...

Contusion: Another name for a bruise. What is a bruise ? A bruise, or contusion, is caused...

Cortex: The outer layer of any organ.

CT scan: Computerized tomography scan. Pictures of structures within the body created by a...

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

Dura: The outermost, toughest, and most fibrous of the three membranes (meninges) covering...

Ear: The hearing organ. There are three sections of the ear, according to the anatomy tex...

Edema: The swelling of soft tissues as a result of excess fluid accumulation. Edema is oft...

Enoxaparin: A low-molecular-weight version of heparin that acts like heparin as an anticoa...

Epidural: Outside the dura, the outermost, toughest, and most fibrous of the three membran...

Epidural hematoma: A hematoma between the skull and the brain's tissue-like covering, whic...

Flexion: The process of bending, or the state of being bent. For example, flexion of the f...

Fracture: A break in bone or cartilage. Although usually a result of trauma, a fracture ca...

Frontal: In anatomy, pertaining to the forehead. As, for example, the frontal bone, fronta...

Head injury: Damage to any of the structures of the head as a result of trauma. While the ...

Headache: A pain in the head with the pain being above the eyes or the ears, behind the he...

Heart: The muscle that pumps blood received from veins into arteries throughout the body. ...

Hematoma: A localized swelling that is filled with blood caused by a break in the wall of ...

Hemorrhage: Bleeding or the abnormal flow of blood.

Heparin: An anticoagulant (anti-clotting) medication. Heparin is useful in preventing thro...

Infant: A young baby, from birth to 12 months of age.

Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, an...

Injury: Harm or hurt. To harm, hurt, or wound. The word injure may be in physical or emot...

Intracranial: Within the cranium, the bony dome that houses and protects the brain.

Leg: In popular usage, the part of the body from the top of the thigh down to the foot, an...

Lethargy: Abnormal drowsiness, stupor.

Medical history: 1. In clinical medicine, the patient's past and present which may ...

Memory: 1. The ability to recover information about past events or knowledge. ...

Meninges: The three membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord (singular: meninx).

Meningitis: Inflammation of the meninges, the three membranes that envelop the brain and t...

Motor: Something that produces or refers to motion. For example, a motor neuron is a nerve...

Mouth: 1. The upper opening of the digestive tract, beginning with the lips and con...

Nausea: Stomach queasiness, the urge to vomit. Nausea can be brought on by many causes, in...

Neck: The part of the body joining the head to the shoulders. Also, any narrow or constric...

Nerve: A bundle of fibers that uses electrical and chemical signals to transmit sensory an...

Nose: The external midline projection from the face. The purpose of the nose is to warm, c...

Nurse: 1) A person trained, licensed, or skilled in nursing. 2) To feed an infant at the ...

Occipital: 1. Pertaining to the occiput, the back of head.
2. Located...

Occipital bone: The bone that forms the rear and rear bottom of the skull.

Open fracture: A fracture in which the bone is sticking through the skin. Also called a co...

Operation: In medicine, a surgical procedure. Many operations are named after persons. The...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Parietal: Adjective from the Latin "parietalis" meaning "belonging to the wall" that the a...

Pediatrics: The field of medicine that is concerned with the health of infants, children, ...

Prescription: A physician's order for the preparation and administration of a drug or dev...

Primary care: A patient's main source for regular medical care, ideally providing continui...

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Resuscitation: The procedure of restoring to life, as in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CP...

Scan: As a noun, the data or image obtained from the examination of organs or regions of...

Seizure: Uncontrolled electrical activity in the brain, which may produce a physical conv...

Sensation: In medicine and physiology, sensation refers to the registration of an incoming...

Shock: In medicine, a critical condition that is brought on by a sudden drop in blood flow...

Short-term memory: A system for temporarily storing and managing information required to ...

Skull: The skull is a collection of bones which encase the brain and give form to the hea...

Sleep: The body's rest cycle.

Spinal cord: The major column of nerve tissue that is connected to the brain and lies with...

Spinal cord injury: Trauma or damage to the spinal cord, the major column of nerve tissue ...

Stroke: The sudden death of brain cells due to lack of oxygen, caused by blockage of blood...

Subarachnoid: Literally, beneath the arachnoid, the middle of three membranes that cover t...

Subarachnoid hemorrhage: A bleeding into the subarachnoid, the space between the arachnoid...

Subdural: Below the dura, the outermost, toughest, and most fibrous of the three membranes...

Subdural hematoma: Bleeding into the space between the dura (the brain cover) and the brai...

Surgery: The branch of medicine that employs operations in the treatment of disease or inj...

Suture: 1. A type of joint between the bones of the skull where the bones are held ...

Symptom: Any subjective evidence of disease. In contrast, a sign is objective. Blood comin...

Tear: A drop of the salty secretion of the lacrimal glands which serves to moisten the con...

Temporal: 1. Pertaining to time, limited in time, temporary, or transient.
...

Temporal bone: A large irregular bone that is situated at the base and side of the skull. ...

Tomography: The process for generating a tomogram, a two-dimensional image of a slice or s...

Trauma: A physical or emotional injury.

Traumatic brain injury: Brain damage from trauma. The three leading causes of death from t...

Unconscious: 1. Interruption of awareness of oneself and one's surroundings, lack ...

Vessel: A tube in the body that carries fluids. Examples of vessels are blood vessels and ...

Warfarin: An anticoagulant drug (brand names: Coumarin, Panwarfin, Sofarin) taken to prev...

X-ray: High-energy radiation with waves shorter than those of visible light. X-ray is used...