About Brain Injury

A Glossary of Terms

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Intracranial Pressure

Understanding Coma

Rancho Los Amigos Scale/ The Levels of Coma

Objectives of Neurosurgery

A Guide to Brain Anatomy

Echolalia - Imitation of sounds or words without comprehension. This is a normal stage of language development in infants, but is abnormal in adults. [Click Here To Return To List]

Edema - Collection of fluid in the tissue causing swelling. [Click Here To Return To List]

Education Program - See Discharge: Options for Rehabilitation Facilities. [Click Here To Return To List]

Electrocardiogram (ECG/EKG) - The recording made by electrode pads located on the patient's chest to monitor heart rate and rhythm. These are connected to a monitor and used routinely in the intensive care unit. [Click Here To Return To List]

Electroencephalogram (EEG) - A procedure that uses electrodes on the scalp to record electrical activity of the brain. Used for detection of epilepsy, coma and brain death. [Click Here To Return To List]

Electromyography (EMG) - An insertion of needle electrodes into muscles to study the electrical activity of muscle and nerve fibers. It may be somewhat painful to the patient. Helps diagnose damage to nerves or muscles. [Click Here To Return To List]

Embolism - The sudden blocking of an artery or a vein by a blood clot, bubble of air, deposit of oil or fat, or small mass of cells deposited by the blood flow. [Click Here To Return To List]

Emotional Lability - Exhibiting rapid and drastic changes in emotional state (laughing, crying, anger) inappropriately without apparent reason. [Click Here To Return To List]

Employment Program - See Discharge: Options for Rehabilitation Facilities. [Click Here To Return To List]

Encephalography - Non-invasive use of ultrasound waves to record echoes from brain tissue. Used to detect hematoma, tumor, or ventricle problems. [Click Here To Return To List]

Endotracheal Tube - A tube that serves as an artificial airway and is inserted through the patient's mouth or nose. It passes through the throat and into the air passages to help breathing. To do this it must also pass through the patient's vocal cords. The patient will be unable to speak as long as the endotracheal tube is in place. It is this tube that connects the respirator to the patient. [Click Here To Return To List]

Engram - A lasting mark or trace. The term is applied to the bioelectrical trace associated with storage of a memory in the nervous system. [Click Here To Return To List]

Environmental Working Conditions - Those physical surroundings of job/worker situations which make specific demands upon a worker's physical capacity. [Click Here To Return To List]

Equilibrium - Normal balance reactions and postures. [Click Here To Return To List]

Error Correction - Should follow error recognition and refers to the ability to replace an inappropriate response with an appropriate one. [Click Here To Return To List]

Error Recognition - Refers to a person's awareness that a response is inappropriate for a task. Return of this ability may be reflected by a patient stating, for example, "I know this is wrong", or show a confused, quizzical look after making an inappropriate response. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation Program - Process of assessment according to a defined set of criteria. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation in A Workshop Setting - An evaluation which has the following characteristics: 1) client may or may not be paid; 2) client is exposed to tasks on which performance can be assessed; 3) client's performance is supervised and evaluated in coordination with the evaluation staff; and 4) existence of established evaluation program. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation in A Vocational Training Setting - An evaluation which has the following characteristics: 1) the client is not paid; 2) the existence of an established vocational training program; 3) primarily for the benefit of the client; 4) clients's performance supervised and evaluated by the instructional staff in coordination with evaluation staff; and 5) does not necessarily result in entry by the client into that training program. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation On-the-Job - Contains at least these characteristics: 1) the client is not necessarily paid; 2) it is primarily for the client's benefit; 3) it will not necessarily result in employment; 4) the employer does not experience any immediate gain; 5) the client does not displace or fill any vacant worker slots; and 6) the client's performance is supervised and evaluated by the employer and/or the evaluation staff. The client is given the opportunity to experience, in various degrees of participation, the specific requirements necessary to do the specific job in an actual job setting. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation Program - Comprehensive assessment of the problems and capabilities of an individual complete with recommendations for dealing with the problems. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evaluation Tools, Vocational - All of the means and media with which the evaluator and the client carry out vocational evaluation. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evoked Potential - Registration of the electrical responses of active brain cells as detected by electrodes placed on the surface of the head at various places. The evoked potential, unlike the waves on an EEG, is elicited by a specific stimulus applied to the visual, auditory or other sensory receptors of the body. Evoked potentials are used to diagnose a wide variety of central nervous system disorders. [Click Here To Return To List]

Evoked Responses, Brain Stem - Auditory brain stem responses provoked by discreet sounds delivered to the ears through headphones. These sound waves are converted to nerve impulses by receptors in the ear. A machine is used to test whether the brain stem has received the signals. The quality of the brain stem's response in a comatose patient is thought to be an important indicator of the degree and site of brain injury. Because this test requires very specialized and expensive equipment, it is not available in all hospitals. A more common test is the EEG. [Click Here To Return To List]

Executive Functions - Planning, prioritizing, sequencing, self-monitoring, self-correcting, inhibiting, initiating, controlling or altering behavior. [Click Here To Return To List]

Extended Care Facility-Basic - Residential facility which supplies 24-hour nursing care and supervision and assistance with activities of daily life. See Discharge: Options for Rehabilitation Facilities. [Click Here To Return To List]

Extended Care Facility-Skilled - A residential facility for the patient who requires 24-hour nursing care (IV, intramuscular injections, special feeding tubes, oxygen) and rehabilitation therapy, such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, or speech therapy on a less intensive basis than as an inpatient in a comprehensive rehabilitation center. An extended care facility can be a short-term alternative (a few months) prior to placement at home (with outpatient therapy) or in a nursing home. See Discharge: Options for Rehabilitation Facilities. [Click Here To Return To List]

Extremity - Arm or leg. [Click Here To Return To List]

Eye Tape - Tape used to close the eyes of a patient who has lost the ability to blink. To protect the eyes and to prevent them from drying out, eye drops may be put into the eyes and the eye tapes may be used to close them. [Click Here To Return To List]

 

 

 

Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

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