Skeletal Disorders



|Disease |Description |Causes |Treatment |

| |Muscle spasms/tightness |Damage to the motor control centers of the brain (primary |None for cause. |

| |Involuntary movements |motor cortex, cerebellum), during pregnancy, birth, or up |Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, |

|Cerebral Palsy |Problems with balance |to age two. |orthopedics (braces, wheelchairs) for symptoms |

| |Awkward gait |Linked to premature births and structural issues with | |

| |Can be minor (clumsiness) to severe (unable to move) |white matter of motor cortex | |

| |Often have learning disabilities | | |

| |Muscle weakness, spasms, or paralysis |Autoimmune disorder with lesion formation. |Immune suppressing drugs |

| |Problems with speech or swallowing |Antibodies attack and destroy the Schwann cells (myelin |Corticosteroids to treat symptoms |

| |Fatigue, chronic pain, nausea and vomiting. |sheath) around the axons of the brain and spine making it |None for long term. |

|Multiple Sclerosis |May be episodic (occur at random times) or progressive (get |very difficult for nerve impulses to move quickly | |

| |worse with time) | | |

| |Tremors (especially in hands) |Certain genetic mutations increase the risk of Parkinson’s|L-DOPA: Drug that is converted into dopamine in the brain |

|Parkinson’s Disease |Rigidity of joints, slowness of movement |Destruction of dopamine-secreting neurons (basal ganglia) |reduces symptoms and slows progression of disease |

| |As it progresses, loss of the ability to walk (stay balanced)|in the major pathways of the brain and formation of “Lewy |Dopamine agonists |

| |and move |bodies” or protein aggregates that atrophy affected |Less effective over time |

| |Dementia |neurons | |

| |Chronic seizures |Varied (tumor, stroke, trauma) |Anticonvulsant medications |

|Epilepsy |Sometimes has a trigger (stress, flashing lights, heart |Some caused by a genetic disorder that makes the Na+ |Surgery in extreme cases (cutting corpus callosum) or in case |

| |problems) |channels in neurons to stay open too long, causing |of tumors |

| | |successive impulses down the neuron (easier to reach |If someone is having a seizure: |

| | |threshold potential) |Move sharp objects away from patient |

| | | |Lay patient on side |

| | | |Lay pillow under head if possible. |

| | | |Call ambulance if seizure lasts more than 5 minutes or if |

| | | |patient injures self while seizing. |

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|Disease |Description |Causes |Treatment |

| |Headache, fever, confusion, drowsiness, and fatigue |A viral or bacterial infection that causes inflammation of|Bed rest, fluids, and anti-inflammatory drugs/steroids to |

|Encephalitis |More advanced and serious symptoms include |the brain. |reduce swelling |

| |seizures/convulsions, tremors, hallucinations, and memory | |Limited success with antiviral and antibacterial drugs. |

| |problems | |Diagnose with CT scan/MRI |

| |Usual onset at 35-40 years old with progressive deterioration|Genetic disorder caused by a dominant insertion mutation |No known cure. |

|Huntington’s disease |of nerves in brain |(CAG repeat) of HTT gene on chromosome 4 that leads to the|Most drugs are experimental and deal with symptoms (diazepam |

| |Physical motions become jerky at start and then more and more|production of a protein that damages the brain. |for jerky movements, antipsychotics for depression) and slowing|

| |uncontrolled as time progresses ( chorea | |down progression of disease. |

| |Cognitive function begins to deteriorate as well as memory, | | |

| |emotional control etc. | | |

| |Headache, neck stiffness, fever, confusion, vomiting, |A bacterial or viral infection of the protective lining of|Diagnosis: Lumbar Puncture to get sample of cerebrospinal fluid|

| |inability to tolerate light and loud noises. |the brain and spinal cord (meninges: dura mater) | |

|Meningitis | | |Corticosteroids to treat inflammation |

| | | |Life threatening if bacterial ( Antibiotics |

| | | |Viral can be treated by dealing with symptoms |

| | | |(anti-inflammatory drugs, bed rest) and resolves itself in a |

| | | |few weeks |

| |Dementia that starts as an inability to acquire new memories |Plaques form in the brain leading to neural degeneration |None. Diet, exercise and mental stimulation may reduce/delay |

|Alzheimer’s Disease |and to recall facts. |and atrophy of the affected area. |progression of symptoms |

| |Loss of long term memory, confusion, and mood swings common |Misfolded amyloid protein causes the plaques to form |Antipsychotics to treat mood swings/aggression |

| |in later stages | |Reduction in acetylcholine and glutamate receptor activity |

| |Eventually lose control of bodily functions and death | |marginally effective |

| |Characterized by stiff muscles, muscle twitching, and |Genetic causes in some patients |No known cure. |

|Amyotrophic Lateral |gradually worsening weakness due to muscle wasting. |Atrophy of the primary motor cortex neurons in the brain |Riluzole can prolong survival rate by 2-3 months by decreasing |

|Sclerosis (ALS) |Results in difficulty speaking, swallowing, movement, and |and spinal cord that control voluntary skeletal muscles |glutamate neurotransmission and sodium channel activity |

| |eventually breathing. |Inability of motor neurons to degrade build-up of | |

| |Death usually occurs 3-5 years post-onset. |protein-rich inclusions, particularly including ubiquitin | |

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