Stroke is a medical condition most people are familiar with, but most people are unaware of its effect on memory functions. There have been several studies conducted that study of effects of stroke on different memory systems, how to properly assess memory damage in stroke patients as well as how to improve memory after stroke. A major theme from the course that relates to stroke and memory is the theme of metamemory and its components such as prospective memory. Personally, I believe that these studies offer hope to stroke victims and their families because memory damage can evaluated and therefore a method of treatment can be developed.
Stroke is a serious medical condition that affects people of all ages specifically older adults. People suffer from a stroke when there is decreased blood flow to the brain. Blood supply decreases due to a blockage or a rupture of a blood vessel which then leads to brain tissues dying. The two types of stroke are ischemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke. An ischemic stroke is caused by a blood clot blocking the artery that brings oxygenated blood to the brain. On the other hand, a hemorrhagic stroke is when an artery in the brain leaks or ruptures (“About Stroke,” 2013). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States and is a major cause of adult disability” (“About Stroke,” 2013). Stroke causes a number of disabilities and also leads to decreased mobility in over half of the victims that are 65 and older. The CDC lists several risk factors of stroke such as heredity, age, gender and ethnicity as well as medical conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and excessive weight gain that in...
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Mr. Fix-it is a 59 year old man with a history of alcohol abuse and diabetic hypertension. Mr. Fix-it has been currently experiencing symptoms such as: rambling speech, poor short-term memory, weakness on the left side of his body, neglects both visual and auditory stimuli to his left side, difficulty with rapid visual scanning, difficulty with complex visual, perceptual and constructional tasks, unable to recall nonverbal materials, and mild articulatory problems. The diagnosis for Mr. Fix-it’s problem is most likely a right-hemisphere stroke. A right-hemisphere stroke is occurs when a blood clot blocks a vessel in the brain, or when there is a torn vessel bleeding into the brain. “A right-hemisphere stroke is common in adults who have diabetes and who are over the age of 55”, similar to Mr. Fix-it (Kluwer, 2012). In addition, Mr. Fix-it has a history of alcohol abuse in which it could have also increased his chances of experiencing a right-hemisphere stroke.
I intend to explore the effects of a parietal brain injury from the perspective of a neuropsychologist; ranging from types of tests that are employed when trying to determine the extent of the damage, to gaining an understanding of how this damage will affect the rest of the brain and/or the body. I will also explore the effects of a brain injury from the perspective of the family members, and their experiences with the changes that occur during the rehabilitation process. According to The Neuropsychology Center, “neuropsychological assessment is a systematic clinical diagnostic procedure used to determine the extent of any possible behavioral deficits following diagnosed or suspected brain injury”(www.neuropsych.com). As mentioned previously, a brain injury can be the result of many types of injuries or disorders, thus a broad range of assessment procedures have been developed to encompass these possibilities.
Stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is blocked or condensed. Blood works to transport oxygen and other beneficial substances to the body’s cells and organs, as well as the brain. There are two main types of strokes that are known as Ischemic strokes and Hemorrhagic strokes. When the blood vessels that provides for the brain becomes congested, is it referred to as ischemic stroke, the most common stroke within adults. Blood clots, a cluster of blood that sticks together, are the cause of Ischemic strokes. Ischemic strokes also takes place when arteries become backed up with plague, leaving less blood to flow. Plague is cholesterol, calcium and fibrous and connective tissue that sticks to the walls of blood vessels. Ischemic strokes eternally damage the brain and cause a person's body to no longer function habitually.Some risk factors that may increase stroke are high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity. Some stroke factors are also due to old age or having a family that has a history of strokes. Men are more likely to have a stroke but the most st...
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) account to a third (30.5%) of all injury-related deaths in the U.S. with an estimated 1.7 million individuals sustaining TBI each year (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010). Classifications of brain injury (e.g., mild, moderate and severe) is mostly done using the Glasgow coma scale (GCS) which has gained broad acceptance for the assessment of the severity of brain damage (Bauer & Fritz, 2004). Recent studies suggest that almost all patients with moderate or severe TBI have a period of recovery during which they are responsive but confused. This state is commonly referred to as the post-traumatic amnesia. Post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) is defined as “a failure of continuous memory” (Artiola et al., 1980; p.377). PTA is often cited as the best method for codifying the degree, level of recovery and outcome after a closed head injury (e.g., Artieola et al., 1980; Tate, Pfaff, & Jurjevic, 2000). PTA duration is a better indicator of outcome than early injury scales such as the GCS score (Richardson et al., 2009).This analysis will examine the limitations of the general PTA assessment scale, and investigate the benefits and limitations of both retrospective and prospective methods used to measure the duration of PTA.
It goes without saying that everyone’s health is important and should be taken care carefully. Everyone has heard of strokes before but many people do not really know its meaning, types, and the number of individuals of that dies due to this issue. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015), strokes kills an average of 130,000 people a year and it is one of the most common deaths that happen in the United States. An average of 800,000 of people die from cardiovascular disease and strokes and it is also a reason of long-term disability (Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). Strokes, which can also be called cerebrovascular accident or CVA happen when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted or the blood vessel going towards the brain burst. Then part of the brain dies or become seriously injured because the brain cells do not receive oxygen and they eventually die. People’s lifestyle may also impact seriously on their health and increase the possibility of having a stroke. Some of the risk that can severely increase the cause of stroke would be high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, cigarette smoking, as well as strokes that
A stroke is the acute neurologic injury that come as a result of an effect of ischemia or haemorrhage of the encephalon. Ischemia is caused by diminished supply of arterial blood which carries sugar and oxygen to brain tissue. Haemorrhagic stroke is due to intracerebral or subarachnoid bleeding and it damages the brain directly at the site of the bleeding by compressing the encircling tissue. Ischemic strokes can be embolic or thrombotic. Thrombotic stroke consequences from clot formation in the arterial blood vessel that provides blood to the encephalon, and can bear upon either large vessel or small vessel.
A stroke can happen at any age but for patients who are 55 and older, their risk factor will increase due to age and physical activity. “While stroke is common among the elderly, a lot of people under 65 also have strokes”(“About Stroke” page 1). Also at risk are African Americans because of other health issues that can trigger a stroke, for example: high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. Caucasians and Hispanics are also at. Not only does Ethnicity and age play a factor, but so does other health conditions. Patients who suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, alcohol and drug
...ook at the effect that these variables had on measures of language impairment in people with stroke-induced aphasia. This study also supported the idea that an increased intensity of therapy was associated with improvements of language impairment.
Research illustrated connection between aphasia and depression (Robinson, Murata & Shimoda, 1999), social isolation (Sarno Taylor, 1997) and low self-esteem (Herrmann & Wallesch, 1989). Kauhanen and colleague (2000) conducted a research to investigate the prevalence and cause of post-stroke aphasia and to study the mental, neurological, and cognitive correlates with 106 patient who suffer from first ischemic stroke. The prevalence of major depression increased from 11 to 33% within the first year.
This condition is preceded by a decline in the baseline performance that is thought to be abnormal for the person’s age and abilities. Mild cognitive impairment is characterised by beginning of changes in memory as well as performance of daily. Severe cognitive impairment is compounded with the more serious loss of performance of the mental processes, resulting in that a person cannot live on their own (Fann et al, 2005). The health, social and economic impacts of cognitive impairments are clear to many health care providers. However, there has not been enough national attention given to this health concern.
Memory plays a significant role in the everyday lives of people of all ages. It allows them to recall information and remember skills that were learned in the past. Memory also organizes past information to help people make current and future decisions. However, imagine forgetting the names of close family members or not having the ability to find your keys every time you want to leave the house. These are some of the struggles that people with Alzheimer’s disease face daily. Alzheimer’s disease was first identified by German neurologist Alois Alzheimer in 1906, and was discovered to have an overpowering effect on explicit memory loss (Gruetzner, 1988). There are two types of Alzheimer’s disease – early onset and late onset. Early onset occurs in patients who are diagnosed before the age of 65 whereas late onset occurs in patients who are diagnosed after the age of 65. In the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease, short-term memory is often lost. As Alzheimer’s disease progresses, problems with long-term memory begin to develop, in addition to short-term memory impairments. Although a lot is known about the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, the cause has not been conclusively identified. However, as research continues, new theories about the cause of Alzheimer’s disease are being proposed. This has led to a controversy over whether Alzheimer’s disease is caused by genetics or environmental influences (Gruetzner, 1988).
Kumar, S., Rao, S. L., Sunny, B., & Gangadhar, B. N. (2007) Widespread cognitive impairment
Dementia is a long-term condition that normally affects people aged 65 and over, younger people can be affected. Having dementia can cause loss of key functions to the brain, such as; loss of memory; confusion; speech and language problems; loss of ability to make judgements; loss of concentration; difficulty in processing information; changes in behaviour and personality. These all lead to a person not been able to function properly. The person’s ability to function deteriorates over a period of time and is usually at least 6 months before positive diagnosis of dementia can be made. Dementia is caused when the brain is damaged by diseases such as Alzheimer’s which is the most common of dementia, vascular which is a series of mini strokes,
Stroke has been classified as the most disabling chronic disease, with deleterious consequences for individuals, families, and society1. Stroke impacts on all domains in the ICF. The body dimension (body functions and structures), the individual dimension (activity), and the social dimension (participation). All domains influence each other2.
Historically, memory has been a recurring topic in cognition research. Through the years, many scientific findings have helped us to understand how memory works. Since, older adults are the subgroup most affected by frequent memory deficiencies, they would be highly benefited with the advance of the cognitive