Brain Injury Terms and Definitions

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
Also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS causes degeneration of the nerve cells in certain regions of the brain and spinal cord that control the muscles.

hippocampus
Part of the brain that assists in storing memory by sorting and sending new bits of information to be stored in appropriate sections of your brain and recalling them when necessary.

Central nervous system Birth Defect
Neural tube defects, hydrocephaly, holoprosencephaly, Dandy-Walker malformation

neural tube defect
A structure in early fetal life that develops into the brain, spinal cord, spinal nerves and spine.

brain tumor
An abnormal growth of tissue in the brain

brain
The part of the central nervous system inside the skull. Its functions include muscle control and coordination, sensory reception and integration, speech production, memory storage and the elaboration of thought and emotion.

closed head injury
An injury to the head or brain in which the skull remains intact.

Guillain-Barre (ge-YAH buh-RA) syndrome
An inflammatory disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord (peripheral nerves) and, more rarely, parts of the brain itself.

vascular dementia
A common form of dementia that results either from narrowing and blockage of the arteries that supply blood to the brain or by strokes that cause an interruption of blood flow within the brain.

CBDRP
Centers for Birth Defects Research & Prevention