Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive
A degenerative disease of the central nervous system characterized by balance difficulties; OCULAR MOTILITY DISORDERS (supranuclear ophthalmoplegia); DYSARTHRIA; swallowing difficulties; and axial DYSTONIA. Onset is usually in the fifth decade and disease progression occurs over several years. Pathologic findings include neurofibrillary degeneration and neuronal loss in the dorsal MESENCEPHALON; SUBTHALAMIC NUCLEUS; RED NUCLEUS; pallidum; dentate nucleus; and vestibular nuclei. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp1076-7)
Multiple System Atrophy
A syndrome complex composed of three conditions which represent clinical variants of the same disease process: STRIATONIGRAL DEGENERATION; SHY-DRAGER SYNDROME; and the sporadic form of OLIVOPONTOCEREBELLAR ATROPHIES. Clinical features include autonomic, cerebellar, and basal ganglia dysfunction. Pathologic examination reveals atrophy of the basal ganglia, cerebellum, pons, and medulla, with prominent loss of autonomic neurons in the brain stem and spinal cord. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1076; Baillieres Clin Neurol 1997 Apr;6(1):187-204; Med Clin North Am 1999 Mar;83(2):381-92)
Cerebral Palsy
A heterogeneous group of nonprogressive motor disorders caused by chronic brain injuries that originate in the prenatal period, perinatal period, or first few years of life. The four major subtypes are spastic, athetoid, ataxic, and mixed cerebral palsy, with spastic forms being the most common. The motor disorder may range from difficulties with fine motor control to severe spasticity (see MUSCLE SPASTICITY) in all limbs. Spastic diplegia (Little disease) is the most common subtype, and is characterized by spasticity that is more prominent in the legs than in the arms. Pathologically, this condition may be associated with LEUKOMALACIA, PERIVENTRICULAR. (From Dev Med Child Neurol 1998 Aug;40(8):520-7)
Bulbar Palsy, Progressive
A motor neuron disease marked by progressive weakness of the muscles innervated by cranial nerves of the lower brain stem. Clinical manifestations include dysarthria, dysphagia, facial weakness, tongue weakness, and fasciculations of the tongue and facial muscles. The adult form of the disease is marked initially by bulbar weakness which progresses to involve motor neurons throughout the neuroaxis. Eventually this condition may become indistinguishable from AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS. Fazio-Londe syndrome is an inherited form of this illness which occurs in children and young adults. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1091; Brain 1992 Dec;115(Pt 6):1889-1900)
Guadeloupe
The name of two islands of the West Indies, separated by a narrow channel. Their capital is Basse-Terre. They were discovered by Columbus in 1493, occupied by the French in 1635, held by the British at various times between 1759 and 1813, transferred to Sweden in 1813, and restored to France in 1816. Its status was changed from colony to a French overseas department in 1946. Columbus named it in honor of the monastery of Santa Maria de Guadalupe in Spain. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p470 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p221)
tau Proteins
Microtubule-associated proteins that are mainly expressed in neurons. Tau proteins constitute several isoforms and play an important role in the assembly of tubulin monomers into microtubules and in maintaining the cytoskeleton and axonal transport. Aggregation of specific sets of tau proteins in filamentous inclusions is the common feature of intraneuronal and glial fibrillar lesions (NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES; NEUROPIL THREADS) in numerous neurodegenerative disorders (ALZHEIMER DISEASE; TAUOPATHIES).
Parkinson Disease
A progressive, degenerative neurologic disease characterized by a TREMOR that is maximal at rest, retropulsion (i.e. a tendency to fall backwards), rigidity, stooped posture, slowness of voluntary movements, and a masklike facial expression. Pathologic features include loss of melanin containing neurons in the substantia nigra and other pigmented nuclei of the brainstem. LEWY BODIES are present in the substantia nigra and locus coeruleus but may also be found in a related condition (LEWY BODY DISEASE, DIFFUSE) characterized by dementia in combination with varying degrees of parkinsonism. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1059, pp1067-75)
Tauopathies
Neurodegenerative disorders involving deposition of abnormal tau protein isoforms (TAU PROTEINS) in neurons and glial cells in the brain. Pathological aggregations of tau proteins are associated with mutation of the tau gene on chromosome 17 in patients with ALZHEIMER DISEASE; DEMENTIA; PARKINSONIAN DISORDERS; progressive supranuclear palsy (SUPRANUCLEAR PALSY, PROGRESSIVE); and corticobasal degeneration.
Neurodegenerative Diseases
Hereditary and sporadic conditions which are characterized by progressive nervous system dysfunction. These disorders are often associated with atrophy of the affected central or peripheral nervous system structures.
Neurofibrillary Tangles
Abnormal structures located in various parts of the brain and composed of dense arrays of paired helical filaments (neurofilaments and microtubules). These double helical stacks of transverse subunits are twisted into left-handed ribbon-like filaments that likely incorporate the following proteins: (1) the intermediate filaments: medium- and high-molecular-weight neurofilaments; (2) the microtubule-associated proteins map-2 and tau; (3) actin; and (4) UBIQUITINS. As one of the hallmarks of ALZHEIMER DISEASE, the neurofibrillary tangles eventually occupy the whole of the cytoplasm in certain classes of cell in the neocortex, hippocampus, brain stem, and diencephalon. The number of these tangles, as seen in post mortem histology, correlates with the degree of dementia during life. Some studies suggest that tangle antigens leak into the systemic circulation both in the course of normal aging and in cases of Alzheimer disease.
Ophthalmoplegia
Parkinsonian Disorders
A group of disorders which feature impaired motor control characterized by bradykinesia, MUSCLE RIGIDITY; TREMOR; and postural instability. Parkinsonian diseases are generally divided into primary parkinsonism (see PARKINSON DISEASE), secondary parkinsonism (see PARKINSON DISEASE, SECONDARY) and inherited forms. These conditions are associated with dysfunction of dopaminergic or closely related motor integration neuronal pathways in the BASAL GANGLIA.
Bell Palsy
A syndrome characterized by the acute onset of unilateral FACIAL PARALYSIS which progresses over a 2-5 day period. Weakness of the orbicularis oculi muscle and resulting incomplete eye closure may be associated with corneal injury. Pain behind the ear often precedes the onset of paralysis. This condition may be associated with HERPESVIRUS 1, HUMAN infection of the facial nerve. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1376)
Hypokinesia
Slow or diminished movement of body musculature. It may be associated with BASAL GANGLIA DISEASES; MENTAL DISORDERS; prolonged inactivity due to illness; and other conditions.
Basal Ganglia
Neurofibrils
Tegmentum Mesencephali
Portion of midbrain situated under the dorsal TECTUM MESENCEPHALI. The two ventrolateral cylindrical masses or peduncles are large nerve fiber bundles providing a tract of passage between the FOREBRAIN with the HINDBRAIN. Ventral MIDBRAIN also contains three colorful structures: the GRAY MATTER (PERIAQUEDUCTAL GRAY), the black substance (SUBSTANTIA NIGRA), and the RED NUCLEUS.
Handwriting
Atrophy
Muscle Hypertonia
Abnormal increase in skeletal or smooth muscle tone. Skeletal muscle hypertonicity may be associated with PYRAMIDAL TRACT lesions or BASAL GANGLIA DISEASES.
Lisuride
Pick Disease of the Brain
A rare form of DEMENTIA that is sometimes familial. Clinical features include APHASIA; APRAXIA; CONFUSION; ANOMIA; memory loss; and personality deterioration. This pattern is consistent with the pathologic findings of circumscribed atrophy of the poles of the FRONTAL LOBE and TEMPORAL LOBE. Neuronal loss is maximal in the HIPPOCAMPUS, entorhinal cortex, and AMYGDALA. Some ballooned cortical neurons contain argentophylic (Pick) bodies. (From Brain Pathol 1998 Apr;8(2):339-54; Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp1057-9)
Dementia
An acquired organic mental disorder with loss of intellectual abilities of sufficient severity to interfere with social or occupational functioning. The dysfunction is multifaceted and involves memory, behavior, personality, judgment, attention, spatial relations, language, abstract thought, and other executive functions. The intellectual decline is usually progressive, and initially spares the level of consciousness.
Ocular Motility Disorders
Disorders that feature impairment of eye movements as a primary manifestation of disease. These conditions may be divided into infranuclear, nuclear, and supranuclear disorders. Diseases of the eye muscles or oculomotor cranial nerves (III, IV, and VI) are considered infranuclear. Nuclear disorders are caused by disease of the oculomotor, trochlear, or abducens nuclei in the BRAIN STEM. Supranuclear disorders are produced by dysfunction of higher order sensory and motor systems that control eye movements, including neural networks in the CEREBRAL CORTEX; BASAL GANGLIA; CEREBELLUM; and BRAIN STEM. Ocular torticollis refers to a head tilt that is caused by an ocular misalignment. Opsoclonus refers to rapid, conjugate oscillations of the eyes in multiple directions, which may occur as a parainfectious or paraneoplastic condition (e.g., OPSOCLONUS-MYOCLONUS SYNDROME). (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p240)
Basal Ganglia Diseases
Diseases of the BASAL GANGLIA including the PUTAMEN; GLOBUS PALLIDUS; claustrum; AMYGDALA; and CAUDATE NUCLEUS. DYSKINESIAS (most notably involuntary movements and alterations of the rate of movement) represent the primary clinical manifestations of these disorders. Common etiologies include CEREBROVASCULAR DISORDERS; NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES; and CRANIOCEREBRAL TRAUMA.
Movement Disorders
Brain
The part of CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM that is contained within the skull (CRANIUM). Arising from the NEURAL TUBE, the embryonic brain is comprised of three major parts including PROSENCEPHALON (the forebrain); MESENCEPHALON (the midbrain); and RHOMBENCEPHALON (the hindbrain). The developed brain consists of CEREBRUM; CEREBELLUM; and other structures in the BRAIN STEM.
Benzilates
Guam
An island in Micronesia, east of the Philippines, the largest and southernmost of the Marianas. Its capital is Agana. It was discovered by Magellan in 1521 and occupied by Spain in 1565. They ceded it to the United States in 1898. It is an unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Department of the Interior since 1950. The derivation of the name Guam is in dispute. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p471)
Lewy Body Disease
A neurodegenerative disease characterized by dementia, mild parkinsonism, and fluctuations in attention and alertness. The neuropsychiatric manifestations tend to precede the onset of bradykinesia, MUSCLE RIGIDITY, and other extrapyramidal signs. DELUSIONS and visual HALLUCINATIONS are relatively frequent in this condition. Histologic examination reveals LEWY BODIES in the CEREBRAL CORTEX and BRAIN STEM. SENILE PLAQUES and other pathologic features characteristic of ALZHEIMER DISEASE may also be present. (From Neurology 1997;48:376-380; Neurology 1996;47:1113-1124)
Speech Disorders
Parkinson Disease, Postencephalitic
Parkinsonism following encephalitis, historically seen as a sequella of encephalitis lethargica (Von Economo Encephalitis). The early age of onset, the rapid progression of symptoms followed by stabilization, and the presence of a variety of other neurological disorders (e.g., sociopathic behavior; TICS; MUSCLE SPASMS; oculogyric crises; hyperphagia; and bizarre movements) distinguish this condition from primary PARKINSON DISEASE. Pathologic features include neuronal loss and gliosis concentrated in the MESENCEPHALON; SUBTHALAMUS; and HYPOTHALAMUS. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p754)
Neck Muscles
The neck muscles consist of the platysma, splenius cervicis, sternocleidomastoid(eus), longus colli, the anterior, medius, and posterior scalenes, digastric(us), stylohyoid(eus), mylohyoid(eus), geniohyoid(eus), sternohyoid(eus), omohyoid(eus), sternothyroid(eus), and thyrohyoid(eus).
Olivopontocerebellar Atrophies
A group of inherited and sporadic disorders which share progressive ataxia in combination with atrophy of the CEREBELLUM; PONS; and inferior olivary nuclei. Additional clinical features may include MUSCLE RIGIDITY; NYSTAGMUS, PATHOLOGIC; RETINAL DEGENERATION; MUSCLE SPASTICITY; DEMENTIA; URINARY INCONTINENCE; and OPHTHALMOPLEGIA. The familial form has an earlier onset (second decade) and may feature spinal cord atrophy. The sporadic form tends to present in the fifth or sixth decade, and is considered a clinical subtype of MULTIPLE SYSTEM ATROPHY. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1085)
Frontotemporal Dementia
The most common clinical form of FRONTOTEMPORAL LOBAR DEGENERATION, this dementia presents with personality and behavioral changes often associated with disinhibition, apathy, and lack of insight.
Nerve Degeneration
Loss of functional activity and trophic degeneration of nerve axons and their terminal arborizations following the destruction of their cells of origin or interruption of their continuity with these cells. The pathology is characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases. Often the process of nerve degeneration is studied in research on neuroanatomical localization and correlation of the neurophysiology of neural pathways.
Gait Disorders, Neurologic
Gait abnormalities that are a manifestation of nervous system dysfunction. These conditions may be caused by a wide variety of disorders which affect motor control, sensory feedback, and muscle strength including: CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DISEASES; PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DISEASES; NEUROMUSCULAR DISEASES; or MUSCULAR DISEASES.
Intralaminar Thalamic Nuclei
Frontal Lobe
Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration
Heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by frontal and temporal lobe atrophy associated with neuronal loss, gliosis, and dementia. Patients exhibit progressive changes in social, behavioral, and/or language function. Multiple subtypes or forms are recognized based on presence or absence of TAU PROTEIN inclusions. FTLD includes three clinical syndromes: FRONTOTEMPORAL DEMENTIA, semantic dementia, and PRIMARY PROGRESSIVE NONFLUENT APHASIA.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Parkinson Disease, Secondary
Conditions which feature clinical manifestations resembling primary Parkinson disease that are caused by a known or suspected condition. Examples include parkinsonism caused by vascular injury, drugs, trauma, toxin exposure, neoplasms, infections and degenerative or hereditary conditions. Clinical features may include bradykinesia, rigidity, parkinsonian gait, and masked facies. In general, tremor is less prominent in secondary parkinsonism than in the primary form. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1998, Ch38, pp39-42)
Neuropsychological Tests
Tests designed to assess neurological function associated with certain behaviors. They are used in diagnosing brain dysfunction or damage and central nervous system disorders or injury.
Facial Muscles
Cognition Disorders
Levodopa
The naturally occurring form of DIHYDROXYPHENYLALANINE and the immediate precursor of DOPAMINE. Unlike dopamine itself, it can be taken orally and crosses the blood-brain barrier. It is rapidly taken up by dopaminergic neurons and converted to DOPAMINE. It is used for the treatment of PARKINSONIAN DISORDERS and is usually given with agents that inhibit its conversion to dopamine outside of the central nervous system.
Alzheimer Disease
A degenerative disease of the BRAIN characterized by the insidious onset of DEMENTIA. Impairment of MEMORY, judgment, attention span, and problem solving skills are followed by severe APRAXIAS and a global loss of cognitive abilities. The condition primarily occurs after age 60, and is marked pathologically by severe cortical atrophy and the triad of SENILE PLAQUES; NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES; and NEUROPIL THREADS. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp1049-57)
Muscle Rigidity
Continuous involuntary sustained muscle contraction which is often a manifestation of BASAL GANGLIA DISEASES. When an affected muscle is passively stretched, the degree of resistance remains constant regardless of the rate at which the muscle is stretched. This feature helps to distinguish rigidity from MUSCLE SPASTICITY. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p73)
Mesencephalon
The middle of the three primitive cerebral vesicles of the embryonic brain. Without further subdivision, midbrain develops into a short, constricted portion connecting the PONS and the DIENCEPHALON. Midbrain contains two major parts, the dorsal TECTUM MESENCEPHALI and the ventral TEGMENTUM MESENCEPHALI, housing components of auditory, visual, and other sensorimoter systems.
Facial Paralysis
Severe or complete loss of facial muscle motor function. This condition may result from central or peripheral lesions. Damage to CNS motor pathways from the cerebral cortex to the facial nuclei in the pons leads to facial weakness that generally spares the forehead muscles. FACIAL NERVE DISEASES generally results in generalized hemifacial weakness. NEUROMUSCULAR JUNCTION DISEASES and MUSCULAR DISEASES may also cause facial paralysis or paresis.
Brain Diseases
Pathologic conditions affecting the BRAIN, which is composed of the intracranial components of the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. This includes (but is not limited to) the CEREBRAL CORTEX; intracranial white matter; BASAL GANGLIA; THALAMUS; HYPOTHALAMUS; BRAIN STEM; and CEREBELLUM.
Reflex, Abnormal
Pons
The front part of the hindbrain (RHOMBENCEPHALON) that lies between the MEDULLA and the midbrain (MESENCEPHALON) ventral to the cerebellum. It is composed of two parts, the dorsal and the ventral. The pons serves as a relay station for neural pathways between the CEREBELLUM to the CEREBRUM.
Disease Progression
Putamen
The largest and most lateral of the BASAL GANGLIA lying between the lateral medullary lamina of the GLOBUS PALLIDUS and the EXTERNAL CAPSULE. It is part of the neostriatum and forms part of the LENTIFORM NUCLEUS along with the GLOBUS PALLIDUS.
Diffusion Tensor Imaging
The use of diffusion ANISOTROPY data from diffusion magnetic resonance imaging results to construct images based on the direction of the faster diffusing molecules.
Blinking
Neurologic Examination
Lewy Bodies
Intracytoplasmic, eosinophilic, round to elongated inclusions found in vacuoles of injured or fragmented neurons. The presence of Lewy bodies is the histological marker of the degenerative changes in LEWY BODY DISEASE and PARKINSON DISEASE but they may be seen in other neurological conditions. They are typically found in the substantia nigra and locus coeruleus but they are also seen in the basal forebrain, hypothalamic nuclei, and neocortex.
Case-Control Studies
Studies which start with the identification of persons with a disease of interest and a control (comparison, referent) group without the disease. The relationship of an attribute to the disease is examined by comparing diseased and non-diseased persons with regard to the frequency or levels of the attribute in each group.
Substantia Nigra
Dopamine Agents
Cerebral Cortex
Hallucinations
Neuroimaging
Non-invasive methods of visualizing the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM, especially the brain, by various imaging modalities.
Saccades
Abducens Nerve Diseases
Diseases of the sixth cranial (abducens) nerve or its nucleus in the pons. The nerve may be injured along its course in the pons, intracranially as it travels along the base of the brain, in the cavernous sinus, or at the level of superior orbital fissure or orbit. Dysfunction of the nerve causes lateral rectus muscle weakness, resulting in horizontal diplopia that is maximal when the affected eye is abducted and ESOTROPIA. Common conditions associated with nerve injury include INTRACRANIAL HYPERTENSION; CRANIOCEREBRAL TRAUMA; ISCHEMIA; and INFRATENTORIAL NEOPLASMS.