PSYC476 Lecture Notes - Half-Life, Oliver Sacks, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
20 Jan 2017
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Document Summary
Term used to describe a range of conditions which primarily affect the neurons in the human brain. These diseases are incurable and debilitating conditions that result in progressive degeneration and/or death of nerve cells. Eg. alzheimer s: parkinson"s, huntington"s, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Doesn t stop once lost, very very very hard to get back. Available therapies treat symptomology; currently no available cures. Cardinal features (x4): bradykinesia (slow movement, muscle rigidity (particularly starting in small joints, hard to move, tremor at rest (key feature of p"s disease, impaired balance and gait (standing/posture and walking shuffle) But also sensory, cognitive and behavioural changes. Progressive, 5-10 years until rigid, akinetic state have to go into home and someone else has to care for you. Book of interest: jonathon franzen, the corrections. 70-80% loss of da neurons in substantia nigra (key feature: very specific area, substantia nigra = black stained substance image = left side is parkinson s patient, right side is normal.
