Central Nervous System Trauma

Trauma to the ______ and spinal cord is a significant cause of death and disability.

The severity and site of ______ affect the outcome:

Injury of several cubic centimeters of ______ parenchyma may be clinically silent.

A blow to the head may be ______ or blunt; it may cause an open or a closed injury.

Severe brain damage can occur in the absence of external signs of ______ injury.

Subarachnoid and ______ hemorrhages most often occur at sites of contusions and lacerations.

A contusion is caused by rapid ______ displacement, disruption of vascular channels, and subsequent hemorrhage.

Dural vessels, especially the middle ______ artery, are vulnerable to traumatic injury.

Traumatic ______ injuries may occur at the site of impact—a coup injury—or opposite the site of impact on the other side of the brain—a contrecoup injury.

In infants, traumatic displacement of the easily deformable skull may tear a vessel, even in the absence of a ______ fracture.

Once a vessel tears, blood accumulates under ______ pressure and dissects the tightly applied dura away from the inner skull surface.

An epidural hematoma may expand rapidly and constitutes a ______ emergency necessitating prompt drainage and repair to prevent death.

Rapid movement of the brain during trauma can tear the ______ veins that extend from the cerebral hemispheres through the subarachnoid and subdural space to the dural sinuses.

Subdural hematomas typically become manifest within the first ______ hours after injury.

Acute subdural hematoma appears as a collection of ______ clotted blood apposed to the contour of the brain surface.