Author: Glossary

The area of the brain responsible for speech production, language processing, and language comprehension. Located in the left frontal operculum, Broca’s area is named after Pierre Paul Broca, who in 1861 identified lesions in this region at autopsy in patients who had lost the ability to speak. In anatomy, the structure located on the left…

Loss of the ability to comprehend language coupled with the inability to produce words. A condition in which someone is unable to speak or write, as a result of damage to Broca’s area. Often called expressive or motor aphasia, Broca’s aphasia is characterized by difficulties with the motor production of speech, problems with articulation, and…

A transient psychotic disorder with duration limited from a few hours to 1 month and an eventual return to full functioning. Symptoms during the episode indicate impaired reality testing that is not culturally sanctioned, delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, or disorganized or catatonic behavior. A transient and brief period of psychosis, lasting no more than a…

Any form of psychotherapy whose end point is defined either in terms of the number of sessions (generally no more than 15 or 20) or in terms of specified objectives. It is usually goal-oriented, circumscribed, active, focused, and directed toward a specific problem or symptom.  

In today’s managed care era, brief psychiatric hospitalization has become more prevalent. Although usually 5–10 days in duration, anything less than 1 month is considered brief. The goals are to stabilize the patient, identify precipitating factors, adjust for relevant environmental factors, and offer emotional support as well as to discharge the patient to a less…

A dyssomnia characterized by sleep disruption due to abnormal respiratory events during sleep, resulting in excessive daytime sleepiness or insomnia. Types of abnormal breathing include apneas (episodes of breathing cessation), hypopneas (abnormally slow or shallow respiration), and hypoventilation (abnormal blood oxygen and carbon dioxide levels). Three forms of breathing-related sleep disorder have been described: obstructive…

This part of the brain includes the pons and the medulla oblongata. The brain stem is the major route by which the forebrain sends information to and receives information from the spinal cord and peripheral nerves. The brain stem controls, among other things, respiration and heart rhythm. All of the brain except the cerebrum and…

The process by which the brain synthesizes, degrades, and alters chemical substrates for repair and function.  

Any technique that permits the in vivo visualization of the substance of the central nervous system (CNS). The best known of such techniques is computed tomography (CT). Newer methods of brain imaging such as positron emission tomography (PET), single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are based on different physical principles…

A culture-specific syndrome observed initially in West Africa. It refers to a condition experienced by high school or university students in response to the challenges of schooling. Symptoms in clude difficulties in concentrating, remembering, and thinking. “Brain tiredness” or fatigue from “too much thinking” are idioms of distress in many cultures, and resulting syndromes resemble…