Neurological Glossary
Warfarin
The most frequently used oral anticoagulant (for thinning the blood and preventing clots forming inside the circulation).
Wallenberg syndrome
Is a neurological condition caused by a stroke in the vertebral or posterior inferior cerebellar artery of the brainstem. Symptoms include difficulties with swallowing, hoarseness, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, rapid involuntary movements of the eyes (nystagmus), and problems with balance and gait coordination.
Wallerian degeneration
Stereotyped degenerative reaction of axons and Schwann cells distal to a site of mechanical damage; occurs simultaneously in many of the axons in a fascicle
Watershed infarct
Infarct occurring in brain tissue that receives blood supply from the distal portions of two major arteries; generally a result of global hypoperfusion
Weber Syndrome
Ipsilateral oculomotor palsy and contralateral hemiplegia due to ventral midbrain lesion affecting the III nerve fascicles and cerebral peduncle
Wernicke’s aphasia
Damage to the Wernicke’s area in the brain which impacts on language comprehension and the production of meaningful language.
Wernicke’s encephalopathy
Syndrome of confusion/short-term memory loss, ophthalmoplegia (especially abducens palsy), and ataxia due to thiamine deficiency, occurring in the setting of alcoholism, starvation, or protracted vomiting; may progress to coma if untreated; associated with neuronal damage that is most prominent in the mamillary bodies, inferior colliculus, and thalamus
West’s syndrome
Epilepsy syndrome characterized by infantile spasms, mental retardation, and hypsarrhythmia on EEG; begins before 1 year of age
White matter
Part of the CNS that contains axons
WHO grade
Scheme for grading central nervous system neoplasms histologically developed by the World Health Organization
- benign
- low grade (atypia only)
- intermediate grade (mitotic activity)
- high grade malignant (necrosis or endothelial proliferation, typically with atypia and mitosis)
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