Task 8 body and behavior brain
injury
What is acquired brain injury? (genetic, environmental,
neurological)
What are Parkinson, dementia (different types), stroke,
pathological aging, brain tumors? (symptoms)
Tumors
Definition & Types
- Tumors (neoplasm) arise from uncontrolled cell growth (develop from
glial or support cells, not neurons because they do not divide).
Benign (goedaardig) tumors: encapsulated (within a membrane), do
not infiltrate, can often be removed surgically. (always
encapsulated?) usually don’t recur after removal but can still be
serious if inaccessible in the brain.
o Meningiomas: Originate in the meninges (brain’s outer layer),
are benign, encapsulated, and grow outside the brain. They
cause symptoms by pressing on brain tissue and may cause
seizures. Usually removable with low recurrence if fully
excised.
Malignant tumors:
infiltrate brain tissue; difficult to remove completely; often recur.
Aggressive, progressive (grow rapidly), and life-threatening.
, o Metastatic tumors: Result from cancer spreading from other
body parts (e.g., lung or breast), are malignant. Often multiple,
complicating treatment and prognosis.
o Gliomas: About 45% of brain tumors, arise from glial cells, can
be benign or malignant, and infiltrate brain tissue.
Causes
Consequences
Symptoms:
- headache
- vomiting
- swelling of the optic disc (papilledema)
, - slowing of the heart rate (bradycardia),
- mental dullness, double vision (diplopia)
- convulsions
- functional impairments due to damage to the brain where the tumor is
located
Mechanisms of Damage:
- Compression: increased intracranial pressure pushing on brain tissue,
restricting blood flow, causing dysfunction.
- Infiltration: malignant tumors invade and destroy adjacent tissue.
Treatment:
- Surgery: Primary method for removal of tumors and diagnosis.
o Mostly done with accessible/encapsulated tumors
o Early detection improves success.
- Radiation therapy: A treatment that uses high-energy rays (like X-rays) to
kill tumor cells or stop them from growing.
o Limitation brain tumors: damage to healthy brain tissue
- Chemotherapy: A treatment using drugs that kill cancer cells or stop their
growth.
o It can affect the whole body but is less effective for brain tumors
because many drugs have trouble crossing the blood-brain barrier.
* Source: Kolb
Seizures
Definition
Seizure = a period of sudden, excessive, synchronous electrical activity in
cerebral neurons.
- If motor areas are involved → convulsions (stuiptrekkingen)
- Types:
Partial seizures: begin at a focus
o Simple: no loss of consciousness
o Complex: loss of consciousness
Symptoms depend on location
Generalized seizures: involve most or all of the brain
o Grand mal/tonic-clonic seizure: most severe.
Begins with an aura (sensation or emotion depending on
seizure focus).
Tonic phase: muscles contract, body becomes rigid.
Clonic phase: rhythmic jerking convulsions.
Followed by postictal depression (depression after
seizure) / sleep.
injury
What is acquired brain injury? (genetic, environmental,
neurological)
What are Parkinson, dementia (different types), stroke,
pathological aging, brain tumors? (symptoms)
Tumors
Definition & Types
- Tumors (neoplasm) arise from uncontrolled cell growth (develop from
glial or support cells, not neurons because they do not divide).
Benign (goedaardig) tumors: encapsulated (within a membrane), do
not infiltrate, can often be removed surgically. (always
encapsulated?) usually don’t recur after removal but can still be
serious if inaccessible in the brain.
o Meningiomas: Originate in the meninges (brain’s outer layer),
are benign, encapsulated, and grow outside the brain. They
cause symptoms by pressing on brain tissue and may cause
seizures. Usually removable with low recurrence if fully
excised.
Malignant tumors:
infiltrate brain tissue; difficult to remove completely; often recur.
Aggressive, progressive (grow rapidly), and life-threatening.
, o Metastatic tumors: Result from cancer spreading from other
body parts (e.g., lung or breast), are malignant. Often multiple,
complicating treatment and prognosis.
o Gliomas: About 45% of brain tumors, arise from glial cells, can
be benign or malignant, and infiltrate brain tissue.
Causes
Consequences
Symptoms:
- headache
- vomiting
- swelling of the optic disc (papilledema)
, - slowing of the heart rate (bradycardia),
- mental dullness, double vision (diplopia)
- convulsions
- functional impairments due to damage to the brain where the tumor is
located
Mechanisms of Damage:
- Compression: increased intracranial pressure pushing on brain tissue,
restricting blood flow, causing dysfunction.
- Infiltration: malignant tumors invade and destroy adjacent tissue.
Treatment:
- Surgery: Primary method for removal of tumors and diagnosis.
o Mostly done with accessible/encapsulated tumors
o Early detection improves success.
- Radiation therapy: A treatment that uses high-energy rays (like X-rays) to
kill tumor cells or stop them from growing.
o Limitation brain tumors: damage to healthy brain tissue
- Chemotherapy: A treatment using drugs that kill cancer cells or stop their
growth.
o It can affect the whole body but is less effective for brain tumors
because many drugs have trouble crossing the blood-brain barrier.
* Source: Kolb
Seizures
Definition
Seizure = a period of sudden, excessive, synchronous electrical activity in
cerebral neurons.
- If motor areas are involved → convulsions (stuiptrekkingen)
- Types:
Partial seizures: begin at a focus
o Simple: no loss of consciousness
o Complex: loss of consciousness
Symptoms depend on location
Generalized seizures: involve most or all of the brain
o Grand mal/tonic-clonic seizure: most severe.
Begins with an aura (sensation or emotion depending on
seizure focus).
Tonic phase: muscles contract, body becomes rigid.
Clonic phase: rhythmic jerking convulsions.
Followed by postictal depression (depression after
seizure) / sleep.
