Neurologic Diseases

Also called: Nervous system diseases

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Basics

Summary
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Diagnosis and Tests

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Specifics
Genetics

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Summary

The brain, spinal cord, and nerves make up the nervous system. Together they control all the workings of the body. When something goes wrong with a part of your nervous system, you can have trouble moving, speaking, swallowing, breathing, or learning. You can also have problems with your memory, senses, or mood.

There are more than 600 neurologic diseases. Major types include:

Diseases caused by faulty genes, such as Huntington's disease and muscular dystrophy
Problems with the way the nervous system develops, such as spina bifida
Degenerative diseases, where nerve cells are damaged or die, such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease
Diseases of the blood vessels that supply the brain, such as stroke
Injuries to the spinal cord and brain
Seizure disorders, such as epilepsy
Cancer, such as brain tumors
infections, such as meningitis

Start Here

What Does the Nervous System Do? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

Neurological Exam (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Spinal Tap (Lumbar Puncture) (Nemours Foundation)

Specifics

Acute Flaccid Myelitis: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Arachnoid Cysts (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) Also in Spanish
Mingling Senses: Synesthesia Explained (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish
Pseudobulbar Affect (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Genetics

Alternating hemiplegia of childhood (National Library of Medicine)
Sjögren-Larsson syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
Spastic paraplegia type 5A: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Statistics and Research

Trouble With Touch? Feeling Your World (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Nervous System Diseases (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

Brain & Life: The Magazine (American Academy of Neurology) Also in Spanish
Neurotoxicity (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Paresthesia (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) Also in Spanish
What Are the Parts of the Nervous System? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Find an Expert

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Also in Spanish

Children

Electroencephalogram (EEG) (Nemours Foundation)
Flu and Children with Neurologic Conditions (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Neurocutaneous Syndromes (Nemours Foundation)
What Is a Pediatric Neurosurgeon? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

Cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) collection (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
EEG (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish