Central Nervous System

The nervous system has two components: the Central Nervous System (CNS) and the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS). The CNS consists of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves; all the other nerves in the body makeup the PNS. Nerves allow a person to sense and respond to the stimuli of the external environment. They also control movement. The brain is at the center of this system, receiving and sending the signals that together make up the experience of living.

Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive condition that affects areas of the brain involved in memory, intelligence, judgment, language and behavior. It is the most common form of dementia in older adults. Alzheimer's disease is more severe than the mild memory loss that many people experience as they grow older. Alzheimer's disease also affects behavior, personality, the ability to think clearly and the ability to carry out daily activities. Close family members usually notice symptoms first, although the person affected also may realize that something is wrong. Scientists think that as many as 4.5 million Americans suffer from AD.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a progressive, invariably fatal neurological disease that attacks the nerve cells (neurons) responsible for controlling voluntary muscles. In ALS, the affected nerves are known as motor neurons, which transfer signals from the brain to the muscles of the body and directing movement. The first symptoms to appear are a general weakness in the arms, legs and in the speaking and breathing muscles. Eventually, these muscles will become weaker and atrophy (wither and become smaller). As many as 20,000 Americans have ALS, and an estimated 5,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with the disease each year.

Anxiety

Anxiety is a combination of emotions including fear, apprehension and worry. Researchers believe that anxiety is the body’s way of preparing for, avoiding and dealing with external threats. There may be cognitive, somatic, emotional and behavioral components, including expectation of danger, high blood pressure, increased heart rate, sweating, inhibited digestive and immune function, trembling and a sense of panic, nausea and chills. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, anxiety disorders affect about 40 million Americans.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

It is estimated that one child in a class of 25-30 children suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The disorder usually becomes apparent during the first few years of school and is characterized by two major symptoms: attention deficit (problems paying attention) and hyperactivity (difficulty in controlling behavior). There is little compelling evidence at this time that ADHD can arise purely from social factors or child-rearing methods. Most substantiated causes appear to fall in the realm of neurobiology and genetics.

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar Disorder is a medical condition in which people have mood swings out of proportion, or totally unrelated, to things going on in their lives. These swings affect thoughts, feelings, physical health, behavior and functioning. About 5.7 million American adults or about 2.6 percent of the population age 18 and older in any given year, have bipolar disorder according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Blepharospasm

Blepharospam is the twitching of an eyelid. It is often benign and related to emotional stress, sleep deprivation or the use of stimulants (for example amphetamines, caffeine, nicotine and decongestants).

Brain Injuries

Accidents can cause trauma to the brain. Because the brain is the most important organ in the body, it is crucial that everything is done to ensure its continued proper function. Treatments aid the healing of brain tissue without permanent damage.

Cervical Dystonia

Cervical dystonia, also known as spasmodic torticollis, is a focal dystonia characterized by neck muscles that contract involuntarily, causing abnormal movements and posture of the head and neck.

Dementia

Dementia is an organic mental disorder characterized by a general loss of intellectual abilities involving impairment of memory, judgment and abstract thinking and changes in personality.

Depression

Depression, also known as clinical or severe depression, is a state of intense sadness and melancholia that has become disruptive to an individual’s ability to function socially and complete the daily activities of life. Most people feel depressed and “down” at some point in their life; it is when these feelings are prolonged that clinical depression is suspect. According to the World Health Organization, clinical depression is currently the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and is expected to become the leading cause of disability worldwide by the year 2020.

Emotional Lability

Emotional lability is described as a sudden change in response to events or phrases that others might find only mildly arousing. It causes sudden and unpredictable episodes of crying, laughing or other emotional displays.

Epilepsy

Epilepsy occurs as a result of abnormal electrical activity originating from neurons in the brain. Brain cells communicate by sending electrical signals in an orderly pattern. In epilepsy, these electrical signals become abnormal, giving rise to an "electrical storm" that produces seizures. Epilepsy is a relatively common condition in the U.S. and about 2.5 million people have epilepsy. In fact, about 9 percent of Americans will have at least one seizure during their lives.

Fibromyalgia Syndrome

Fibromyalgia is a chronic syndrome characterized by specific muscle, joint, or bone pain, fatigue and a large range of other symptoms. There is usually a heightened sensitivity to the skin, tingling of the skin, achiness in the muscles, limb weakness and nerve pain. This condition is seen in 3 percent to 6 percent of the general population and is often diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50 years old.

Hemifacial Spasm – see Blepharospasm

Huntington Disease

Huntington disease is a genetic, progressive, neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the gradual development of involuntary muscle movements affecting the hands, feet, face and trunk and can cause dementia. It is one of the first inherited genetic disorders for which an accurate test exists. Huntington disease affects an estimated 3 to 7 per 100,000 people of European ancestry according to the National Institutes of Health.

Impulse Control Disorders

Disorders whose essential features are the failure to resist an impulse, drive, or temptation to perform an act that is harmful to the individual or to others. Individuals experience an increased sense of tension prior to the act and pleasure, gratification or release of tension at the time of committing the act.

Intermittent Claudication

An aching, crampy, tired and sometimes burning pain in the legs that comes and goes- it typically occurs with walking and goes away with rest - due to poor circulation of blood in the arteries of the legs. The usually intermittent nature of the pain is due to narrowing of the arteries that supply the leg with blood, limiting the supply of oxygen to the leg muscles, a limitation that is felt especially when the oxygen requirement of these muscles rises with exercise. Intermittent claudication in and of itself is often a symptom of severe atherosclerotic disease of the peripheral vascular system.

Mania

Mania is a medical condition characterized by extremely elevated mood, energy and unusual thought patterns. There are several possible causes for mania, but it is most often associated with bipolar disorder, where episodes of mania may cyclically alternate with episodes of clinical depression. These cycles may relate to diurnal rhythms and environmental stressors. Mania varies in intensity, from mild mania (known as hypomania) to full-blown mania with psychotic features (hallucinations and delusions).

Memory

Memory is the ability to store, retain and recall information from the brain. The study of memory has become one of the pillars of a new branch of science that marries cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Over time, it may become more difficult for people to remember little things here and there; memory loss is generally associated with old age and is a common symptom of several diseases such as Alzheimer’s, dementia and hypothyroidism.

Migraine

Migraine headaches are one of the most common and most debilitating neurological conditions characterized by severe pain on one or both sides of the head. They are usually accompanied by sensitivity to light, sound and nausea. It is estimated that migraine headaches are widespread throughout the population, with 10 percent of the population diagnosed and 5 percent undiagnosed. Migraine is three times more common in women than in men.

Motion Sickness

Motion sickness is induced by motion (as in travel by air, car or ship) and characterized by nausea.

Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

Multiple Sclerosis is a chronic disorder in which damage occurs to the protective tissue, known as myelin, surrounding the nerve fibers of the central nervous system. With MS, a person’s immune system malfunctions and starts attacking the body’s own tissues. In this case, the myelin sheaths are affected. Myelin protects the nerves and is necessary for their proper function. As the disease progresses and myelin is destroyed, the nerve impulses are interrupted and the symptoms of MS occur.

The 400,000 Americans with MS are different in the extent to which they are affected. There are four clinical courses of the disease which range from occasional flare ups to the constant worsening of symptoms and combinations of the two.

Myasthenia Gravis

Myasthenia Gravis is a chronic neuromuscular disease that leads to fluctuating weakness and fatigue. The waxing-and-waning weakness of muscles, worsening with use and improving with rest, is a hallmark of this particular disease. Myasthenia gravis is caused by a defect in the transmission of nerve impulses to muscles. It is a lesser known disorder and is estimated to affect about 14 people per 100,000 in the U.S.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a potentially disabling anxiety disorder. A person who has OCD has intrusive and unwanted thoughts and repeatedly performs tasks to get rid of the thoughts. The effects of OCD range from mild to severe.

Pain

Pain can arise for a variety of reasons including injury, post-surgery and a complex malfunction of the nerves. While effective pain management is an important part of the healing process, many people must cope daily with pain caused from other nerve ailments. Keeping pain under control can lead to a more comfortable and thus happier, individual.

Panic Disorders

A panic attack is an episode of intense fear or psychological distress which suddenly appears and symptoms include trembling, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, sweating, nausea, dizziness, hyperventilation and sensations of choking. Repeated attacks may be a sign of a panic disorder and are usually associated with other anxiety problems. It is estimated that up to 10 percent of people in the U.S. will experience a panic disorder at some point in their lives.

Parkinson Disease

Parkinson's disease is a disorder that affects nerve cells, or neurons, in a part of the brain that controls muscle movement. In Parkinson's, neurons that make a chemical called dopamine die or do not work properly. Dopamine normally sends signals that help coordinate a person’s movements. No one knows what damages these cells. This disease affects 1.5 million in the U.S. and may progress for years.

Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS)

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a disorder that causes a strong urge to move your legs. This urge to move often occurs with strange and unpleasant feelings in your legs. Moving your legs relieves the urge and the unpleasant feelings. People who have RLS describe the unpleasant feelings as creeping, crawling, pulling, itching, tingling, burning, aching, or electric shocks. Sometimes, the feelings also occur in the arms. The urge to move and unpleasant feelings occur when you’re resting and inactive. They tend to be worse in the evening and at night and are temporarily relieved in the morning. Restless legs syndrome (RLS) may affect as many as 12 million people in the United States.

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a serious brain disorder that distorts the way a person thinks, acts, expresses emotions, perceives reality and relates to others. Schizophrenia can leave its sufferer frightened and withdrawn. It is a life-long disease that cannot be cured, but usually can be controlled with proper treatment. Contrary to popular belief, schizophrenia is not a split personality. Schizophrenia is a psychosis, a type of mental illness in which a person cannot tell what is real from what is imagined. Schizophrenia affects about 1.1 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older in a given year.

Seizures

Seizures are a sudden, violent involuntary contraction of a group of muscles that may be paroxysmal and episodical or transient and acute.

Sleep Disorders

Sleep disorders include sleeping too much or a lack there of. Doctors recommend eight to ten hours of sleep a night; the average American only gets seven. Insomnia is defined as the inability to sleep and/or to be incapable of remaining asleep for any lengthy amount of time. A common complaint amongst insomniacs is the inability to “turn off their mind” for more than just a few minutes at a time. Narcolepsy is a neurological condition characterized by excessive daytime sleep and the disorder of rapid eye movement (REM). It is easily distinguishable, as patients feel overwhelmingly sleepy during the day, even after a full nights’ rest and often tend to fall asleep without warning at inappropriate times and places.

Spasticity

Spasticity is a muscle control disorder that is characterized by tight or stiff muscles and an inability to control those muscles. In addition, reflexes may persist for too long and may be too strong (hyperactive reflexes). Caused by an imbalance of signals from the central nervous system to the muscles, spasticity is often found in people with cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury.

Stress

Stress is an emotional and physical response to threats from the outside world. Common stress reactions include muscular tension, irritability, inability to concentrate, and a variety of physical symptoms, such as headaches and an accelerated heart rate. Stress releases powerful neurochemicals and hormones that prepare us for action (to fight or to flee). If no action is taken, the stress response can lead to health problems. Prolonged, uninterrupted, unexpected and unmanageable stresses are the most damaging types of stress.

West Syndrome

West syndrome, also known as infantile spasm, is a rare serious form of epilepsy in infants. The syndrome is age-related and generally occurs between the third and sixth month, though it is often caused by an organic brain dysfunction whose origins are prenatal, perinatal or postnatal. Scientific research estimates that prevalence is around one in 4,000 to one in 6,000 with boys more likely to be affected than girls. Unfortunately, up to 90 percent of affected children suffer severe physical and cognitive impairments which stay with them throughout their lives.