The zone of underperfused but still salvageable brain tissue surrounding the core of an ischemic infarct is called the penumbra.
Missing Word
penumbra
The penumbra is tissue that is losing blood flow but has not yet died. Restoring perfusion quickly can save it, which is why stroke treatment is so time-sensitive.
Category: Ischemic Stroke
Question 2
Inability to recognize familiar objects, such as a comb or a cup, after a stroke even though vision itself is intact is called agnosia.
Missing Word
agnosia
Agnosia is a problem with recognizing and interpreting sensory information, not with the senses themselves. Patients may need objects named or handed to them and are protected from safety hazards they no longer recognize.
Category: Rehabilitation and Safety
Question 3
Depression is a common complication in the months after a stroke and can slow rehabilitation, so the nurse watches for persistent sadness and loss of interest in recovery activities.
Missing Word
Depression
Mood changes are frequent after stroke because of both the brain injury and the sudden loss of function and independence. Untreated, they reduce participation in therapy and worsen outcomes, so the nurse screens for them and reports them so treatment can begin.
Category: Stroke Recovery
Question 4
Conditions such as cancer that make the blood clot more readily than normal, called hypercoagulable states, raise the risk of ischemic stroke.
Missing Word
hypercoagulable
A hypercoagulable state tips the balance toward clot formation, so clots can form in cerebral arteries or travel there from elsewhere. Identifying and managing these conditions is part of preventing another stroke.
Category: Ischemic Stroke
Question 5
Right after a stroke, the affected arm and leg are often limp with little or no muscle tone, a state described as flaccid.
Missing Word
flaccid
Flaccid limbs have lost their tone and cannot support themselves, so the nurse positions and supports them carefully, protects the weak shoulder and performs range-of-motion exercises. Tone often increases in later weeks as recovery proceeds.
Category: Rehabilitation and Safety
Question 6
Supporting a stroke patient's weak, limp arm on a pillow or lap tray and never pulling on it during transfers helps prevent subluxation, a partial dislocation of the shoulder joint.
Missing Word
subluxation
When the shoulder muscles are weak after a stroke, the weight of the arm can pull the joint partly out of place, causing pain and limiting recovery. Supporting the arm and lifting the patient by the trunk rather than the arm protect the shoulder.
Category: Rehabilitation and Safety
Question 7
In most people the language centers lie in the left cerebral hemisphere, which is called the dominant hemisphere.
Missing Word
dominant
The dominant hemisphere controls language, so a stroke there often causes aphasia along with weakness on the opposite side of the body. A stroke in the other hemisphere more often affects spatial awareness and attention.
Category: Cerebral Circulation
Question 8
Narrowing of the cerebral arteries that can follow a subarachnoid hemorrhage and cause delayed ischemia is called vasospasm.
Missing Word
vasospasm
Vasospasm is a reflexive constriction of the cerebral arteries irritated by blood in the subarachnoid space. It can reduce blood flow and cause a delayed ischemic injury, so neurologic status is watched closely.
Category: Hemorrhagic Stroke
Question 9
When a cerebral artery narrows slowly, neighboring vessels can enlarge and carry blood around the blockage, a network called collateral circulation that can limit the size of a stroke.
Missing Word
collateral
Collateral circulation supplies brain tissue through alternate routes, including connections among the arteries at the base of the brain. Patients with good collateral flow may have more salvageable tissue around an ischemic core.
Category: Cerebral Circulation
Question 10
Repeating the same word, phrase or action over and over after it no longer fits the situation, a deficit that can follow a stroke, is called perseveration.
Missing Word
perseveration
Perseveration is continued repetition of speech, behavior or thoughts after the situation has changed. The nurse gently redirects the patient and gives simple, single-step instructions.
Category: Rehabilitation and Safety
Question 11
Inability to carry out learned, purposeful movements such as brushing the hair, despite intact strength and understanding, is called apraxia.
Missing Word
apraxia
Apraxia is a disorder of motor planning. Occupational therapists help patients relearn daily tasks by breaking them into simple steps.
Category: Rehabilitation and Safety
Question 12
Before a clot-dissolving drug is given for an acute ischemic stroke, the nurse obtains an accurate weight because the dose is calculated from it.
Missing Word
weight
Thrombolytic dosing is based on body weight, and an estimated weight can lead to an overdose that raises bleeding risk or an underdose that fails to dissolve the clot. Measuring weight is one of the preparation steps, along with vital signs and IV access.
Category: Acute Stroke Care
Question 13
The vertebral arteries merge at the base of the brain to form the basilar artery, which supplies the brainstem and cerebellum.
Missing Word
basilar
The basilar artery is the main trunk of the posterior circulation. Its occlusion can cause quadriplegia and locked-in syndrome.
Category: Cerebral Circulation
Question 14
The carotid arteries, whose pulse can be felt on each side of the front of the neck, can develop plaque that breaks loose and travels to the brain, causing an ischemic stroke.
Missing Word
carotid
The common carotid arteries rise through the neck and divide into internal and external branches, and the internal carotids supply much of the brain. Plaque in a carotid artery can narrow it or shed clot fragments that lodge in a cerebral artery, which is why carotid disease is a major cause of ischemic stroke.
Category: Cerebral Circulation
Question 15
A sudden, severe headache that peaks almost instantly, a classic sign of a subarachnoid hemorrhage, is called a thunderclap headache.
Missing Word
thunderclap
A thunderclap headache reaches full intensity almost at once and is often described as the worst headache of the patient's life. It requires an emergency head CT.
Category: Hemorrhagic Stroke