Wide varieties of medical procedures are used for the brain. These tools aim to diagnose illnesses, study the maturation of the brain and to treat certain conditions. Currently, some of them are mainly used in medical research, but these methods...
Brain surgery, also called neurosurgery, is a field of medicine in which surgeons must navigate their way through tangles of neurons, or brain cells. Cut neurons don't regenerate, and functional areas of the brain often have fewer well-defined...
OPLL, or Ossified Posterior Longitudinal Ligament, describes a general disease where the spine is compressed due to ossifications of the ligaments that run parallel to the cervical spine. These ossifications can take the shape of bone spurs or a...
According to "Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine," herniation or protrusion of a cervical disk commonly causes pain in the neck, shoulder, arm or hand. C-3, C-4, and C-5 designate the third, fourth and fifth cervical disks, counting from...
Viral meningitis is caused most often by a virus belonging to the enterovirus group. Enterovirus infections are common, but only a small percentage of people will go on to develop this disease. Viral meningitis causes swelling of the membranes...
Wrist and hand movement, as well as sensation, are controlled by the ulnar nerve, which runs from the wrist into the shoulder. If the ulnar nerve becomes depressed or constricted due to injury or overuse, a doctor may recommend surgical treatment...
Dilantin (phenytoin) is used as an anti-convulsant in the treatment of seizure activity for epilepsy patients. Dilantin works by slowing the electrical impulse activity in the brain that triggers seizures. If Dilantin is withdrawn from a patient,...
Technology has made brain surgery a somewhat routine operation. However, neurosurgery places you at risk for a range of medical complications, according to an October 2011 article in the “Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.”...
According to a 2000 article in "Neurosurgery Quarterly" by Dr. Max Kole, primary central nervous system tumors occur in 10,000 to 17,000 patients annually in the United States. Glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive brain tumor accounts for...
Falls, vehicular and occupational accidents, and sports and recreational trauma commonly cause accidental head injuries in children and adults. The severity of head injuries varies according to the level of trauma sustained by the brain, skull and...
The American Brain Tumor Association explains that while brain cysts are not cancerous, they can be found in cancerous tumors. Brain cysts can contain fluid, such as blood, cerebrospinal fluid, tissue or minerals. Leaking cysts can irritate nearby...
Twenty-six vertebrae make up the structure of the spine. Discs filled with a soft jelly-like matter fill the space between the vertebral bones. The purpose of the disc material is to cushion the bones and help keep them aligned. If the disc slips...
Headaches are a ubiquitous problem and a common reason for doctor visits. Most headaches are benign, with no serious underlying cause. Often people have a particular pattern of headaches. They might become concerned if there's a change in the...
Gluten is a protein found in a number of common grains, including wheat, barley and rye. For those with gluten sensitivity, exposure to this protein can cause a number of health problems, from anemia to neurological complications. Gluten...
General terms used to describe disk problems include herniated, ruptured, protruded, slipped, and prolapsed disk. However, they all mean the same thing and refer to a portion of the intervertebral disk which pushes itself onto the spinal cord or...
The spine is made up of 26 vertebral bones. Filling the space between the bones is a soft jelly-like matter called a disc. The disc material cushions the bones and helps keep the spine aligned. A herniated disc is the medical term when the disc...
Spinal decompression is a catchall phrase for back pain treatments that include nonsurgical options, such as traction, or operative procedures such as endoscopic decompression and laminectomy. The desired effect is the same for all three--to...
Whether you are riding in an airplane, a fast-moving elevator, or witnessing a thunderstorm, you have likely noticed a sense of physical discomfort due to changes in barometric pressure. Barometers are instruments which are used to measure air...
Rhizotomy is a neurosurgical procedure that is performed on the spinal cord of patients with spastic cerebral palsy, an abnormality in the motor tone and function present at birth which causes a rigid posture. Based on a study published by the...
Taking medication to suppress the tics caused by Tourette's Syndrome is the most straightforward way to treat the disease. A class of antipsychotic drugs known as neuroleptics have proven to be the most effective in people suffering from severe...
The X-Stop, also called an interspinous process decompression system, refers to a surgical procedure designed to ease back and leg pain associated with lumbar spinal stenosis, a degenerative condition that occurs when the spinal nerves in the...
The lower end of the spinal cord floats in fluid within the bones at the end of the spine, attached to the tailbone by a thin elastic thread of tissue. In some children, developmental abnormalities cause fixation of the end of the spinal cord to...
A tethered spinal cord results from tissue attachments in the spinal canal that cause abnormal spinal cord stretching. Release surgery seeks to sever those attachments to avoid or reverse neurological impairment. Several factors affect the...
Chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency, CCSVI, is a medical condition affecting the circulation of blood surrounding the spine and brain, and caused by a blockage in the internal jugular or other vein. The term CCSVI was coined in 2008 by...
The vertebrae in the spine serve to protect and support the spinal cord. These vertebrae are themselves cushioned and supported by cartilage-filled discs. Sometimes these discs can break, leading to a herniated or a ruptured disc. The symptoms of...
A brain cyst is a noncancerous growth that contains tissue, blood, cerebrospinal fluid or minerals. The American Brain Tumor Association points out that brain cysts can cause problems if they are located in regions responsible for essential...
The cost of many medical procedures rises over time, due in part to technological advances. New procedures often carry a high price tag as well. Many medical procedures, whether elective or necessary, are performed in the hospital, with the added...
A prolapsed disc, also called a herniated disc or slipped disc, can occur anywhere along your spine. The most common sites are the low back and neck. Your discs are jelly-like structures that are found between the vertebrae. They help your back to...
The cervical spine consists of seven vertebrae, labeled C1-C7, which form the upper part of the spine in the neck. As people age, the discs between the vertebrae that cushion them and help them move more easily, degenerate. Herniated discs, also...
Brain tumors are created by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division. Learn about the symptoms and treatments for brain cancer in this video.
