APPENDIX( continued)
Case Managers: Responsible for assessing, planning, implementing, coordinating, monitoring, and evaluating actions and services that patients and families need. Case management may need to be licensed or certified by states or other organizations depending on the funding agency’ s standards.
Central Nervous System( CNS): The brain and spinal cord. The CNS, which receives sensory impulses from and sends motor impulses to the peripheral nervous system( i. e., nerves outside the CNS). It controls thought, guides movement, registers sensations, and controls the activity of all parts of the body.
Cerebellum: A large structure at the lower back part of the brain responsible for the coordination of movement and balance, motor learning, and some cognitive function.
Cerebral Cortex: Outer layer of the brain; the wrinkly surface that you see when looking at a whole brain. The cerebral cortex is responsible for higher thought processes including speech, memory, attention, perception, consciousness, perception, and decision making. The cerebral cortex is divided into two hemispheres that are connected through the corpus callosum. Four different lobes on each side can be identified: the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital.
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Cerebrospinal Fluid( CSF): The fluid that flows through and protects the brain. One hundred to 150ml of CSF flow in the four cavities( ventricles) of the brain, the spinal cord’ s central canal, and the space( known as the subarachnoid space) between the middle and inner layers of the membrane( meninges) enclosing the brain and spinal cord. Laboratory analysis of CSF, usually obtained via lumbar puncture, may help to diagnose central nervous system infections, certain tumors, or neurologic disorders. During lumbar puncture, CSF is removed from the spinal canal via a hollow needle inserted between certain bones of the spinal column within the lower back( i. e., usually the third and fourth lumbar vertebrae).
Certified Nursing Assistant( CNA): Provide bedside patient care under the direction of licensed vocational nurses and registered nurses. The CNA usually assists older adults in Activities of Daily Living. They may be employed by state nursing facilities.
Chorea: Jerky, irregular, relatively rapid involuntary movement that primarily involves muscles of the face or extremities. Choreic movements are relatively simple and discrete or highly complex in nature. Although involuntary and purposeless, these movements are sometimes incorporated into deliberate movement patterns.
Chromosomes: Thread-like structures within the nuclei of cells composed of DNA( deoxyribonucleic acid) that carries genetic information(“ the genes”) involved in directing cellular activities, thus controlling functioning and determining the expression of inherited traits.
Cognition: Mental actions and the process of acquiring knowledge such as perception, memory, awareness, reasoning, judgment, intellect, and imagination.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Complementary and alternative medicine, as defined by National Institutes of Health, is a group of diverse medical and healthcare systems, practices, and products that are not currently considered to be part of conventional medicine. It is important to check when using alternative medicine that these therapies were thoroughly tested in evidence-based( and not anecdotal) experiments and that they are FDA-approved.
Computerized Tomography( CT) Imaging or Scanning: An advanced diagnostic scanning technique during which cross-sectional images of tissues and organs are produced by passing X-rays through the body at various angles.
Contractures: Fixed resistance to passive stretching of certain muscles due to shortening or wasting( atrophy) of muscle fibers or the development of scar tissue( fibrosis) over joints.