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Quiz about Its All in Your Head
Quiz about Its All in Your Head

It's All in Your Head! Trivia Quiz


We can't transplant it, reproduce its functions, or live without it... the brain has been called the last vital organ we have!

A multiple-choice quiz by ragiel. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
ragiel
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
148,644
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
6 / 10
Plays
2410
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. Prior to the availability of today's testing, these brain disorders were often mistakenly believed to be psychiatric in origin except which one? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Alzheimer's disease usually starts with loss of childhood memories, confusion, and inability to recognize friends and relatives.


Question 3 of 10
3. Impaired muscle control, insomnia, and delirium can (rarely!) be early signs which of the following? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. High blood pressure can cause a condition resembling Alzheimer's disease.


Question 5 of 10
5. PET scans measure the flow of blood to areas of the brain by using a radioactive isotope. Brain activity requires an increase in blood flow to the tissues that are working harder.


Question 6 of 10
6. A blow to the back of the head can result in which of these conditions? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Which of these is not known to cause mental retardation? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Parkinsonism, with its characteristic tremors and impaired movement, can have a number of causes. These may include any of the following: environmental toxins, damage to the brain caused by repeated injuries, infectious disease, taking prescribed medication, and hereditary factors.


Question 9 of 10
9. Parkinson's is the result of the death of a specific type of nerve cell in the brainstem. The tissues affected are known as "black stuff" when translated to English, but what is the Latin term used by medical staff? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Shrinkage of specific areas of the brain is found in patients with some types of schizophrenia. This can be seen on PET scans and MRI.



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Prior to the availability of today's testing, these brain disorders were often mistakenly believed to be psychiatric in origin except which one?

Answer: subdural hematoma

Subdural hematoma is a blood clot located under the protective structure called the dura mater. Clinically, it looks like a brain tumor or acute stroke with focal paralysis, confusion, and sometimes coma. CAT scan shows the difference.
Multiple sclerosis starts with physical symptoms that appear and disappear unpredictably. If the brain's mood-regulating centers are affected, the patient may also have mania, depression, or unpredictable rage. MRI shows one or more areas of brain involvement and is the diagnostic test needed.
Frontal lobe tumors disturb the patient's judgment and impulse control, resulting in behavioral changes. These get worse over time. MRI scan will show the tumor responsible.
Lupus causes inflammation of body structures, including the skin, kidneys, and brain. Blood tests show antibodies that attack the involved tissues. When these antibodies attack the brain, they can cause insomnia, somnolence, mood swings and sometimes delirium.
These diseases are still misdiagnosed in 2003, because many patients (and family doctors!) assume that mood, thought, and behavior changes are always due to stress or to primary psychiatric disorders. Tragically, this belief can result in missed opportunities for early diagnosis and treatment.
2. Alzheimer's disease usually starts with loss of childhood memories, confusion, and inability to recognize friends and relatives.

Answer: False

Confusion and trouble remembering recent and current events are often the first signs noticed. The others start to develop later in the course of the disease. Medications are available to slow the progression of Alzheimer's.
3. Impaired muscle control, insomnia, and delirium can (rarely!) be early signs which of the following?

Answer: Creutzfeld-Jakob disease

Creutzfeld-Jakob disease (human spongiform encephalopathy) can be caused by exposure to infectious tissue from others. Patients have developed it after treatment with pituitary hormones, and after corneal transplants. One type is caused by eating infected meat ("mad cow disease"). Most often, a mutation in brain proteins occurs spontaneously.

The tissue will then be infectious to others, but the disease cannot be transmitted by ordinary contact. No treatment is known at this time. Pituitary hormone replacement now uses synthetic human hormones. Corneas are not accepted from donors who die with signs of this disease.
4. High blood pressure can cause a condition resembling Alzheimer's disease.

Answer: True

Small blood vessels in the brain may leak under the excessive pressure, causing "ministrokes" which result in memory and thinking problems. Controlling the blood pressure can slow the progress of this condition.
5. PET scans measure the flow of blood to areas of the brain by using a radioactive isotope. Brain activity requires an increase in blood flow to the tissues that are working harder.

Answer: False

A technique called SPECT scanning is described here. It's not used in clinical practice as of 2003. PET scans measure the rate at which brain cells use blood glucose; the harder they work, the more energy they need! PET scanning is used currently as a clinical tool. Both of the radioactive isotopes rapidly decay without generating dangerous high-frequency radiation.
6. A blow to the back of the head can result in which of these conditions?

Answer: blindness

Deafness can be caused either by damage to the sensors in the ear itself or by auditory nerve damage interrupting the transmission of the sensory information. Loss of language perception is called Wernicke's aphasia. Its cause is damage to the left temporal area. Staggering can be caused by damage to the cerebellum, the motor nerve tracts, or the inner ear. None of the above structures would be endangered by a blow to the back of the head. The area responsible for interpreting visual information is located at the back of the brain, however, and is vulnerable to damage from a blow to the back of the head.

Interestingly, a person with this type of blindness may be unaware of it as the damaged sensory area is not able to detect the absence of visual information.
7. Which of these is not known to cause mental retardation?

Answer: Daily maternal consumption of 100-200 milligrams of caffeine while pregnant.

The commonest genetic cause is trisomy 21, or Down's syndrome. Meningitis and encephalitis can be viral or bacterial. Many types can be prevented by use of available vaccines. No researchers have performed controlled prospective studies of caffeine intake during pregnancy, for ethical reasons.

However, some proposed sources of problems have been measured in non pregnant women. These proposed risk factors include continuous high levels of catecholamines (naturally produced stimulating hormones which might have an impact on brain development) and continuously elevated blood pressure. Neither of these conditions has been found to occur in test subjects consuming moderate amounts of caffeine (100-300 milligrams) on a daily basis.

Many obstetricians recommend eliminating caffeine anyway, since it plays no known essential role in nutrition.
8. Parkinsonism, with its characteristic tremors and impaired movement, can have a number of causes. These may include any of the following: environmental toxins, damage to the brain caused by repeated injuries, infectious disease, taking prescribed medication, and hereditary factors.

Answer: True

The Parkinsonism developed by many boxers is believed to result from repeated blows to the head. Exposure to carbon monoxide is associated with later development of Parkinsonism.
Medications that have Parkinsonian side effects include most antipsychotics, Compazine, and Reglan. Stopping the medication solves this problem.
Patients who recovered from the 1918 influenza strain sometimes developed severe Parkinsonism later. Fortunately, no more flu epidemics have had similar complications as of 2003.
Family members of Parkinson's patients sometimes appear to have a higher risk of developing it themselves. The reason for this is not known.
The commonest cause of Parkinsonism is true Parkinson's disease. This appears spontaneously and has no known cause.
9. Parkinson's is the result of the death of a specific type of nerve cell in the brainstem. The tissues affected are known as "black stuff" when translated to English, but what is the Latin term used by medical staff?

Answer: Substantia nigra.

Anatomists working in Renaissance times lacked microscopes, so many of the names they assigned were simple descriptions.
10. Shrinkage of specific areas of the brain is found in patients with some types of schizophrenia. This can be seen on PET scans and MRI.

Answer: True

This finding may be useful in the future for prognosis and treatment decisions.
Source: Author ragiel

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