Adult Neurology Glossary
100 terms total — 24 showing — Last updated 15 Sep 2026
ideomotor apraxia
Inability to perform learned skilled movements on command despite understanding the task and having intact motor function.
abulia
Marked reduction in spontaneous speech, movement, and initiative, often seen in frontal lobe lesions.
agnosia
Inability to recognise objects, people, or sounds despite intact sensory function.
akathisia
A movement disorder characterized by subjective feelings of restlessness accompanied by an urge to move constantly.
akinesia
Complete loss of voluntary movement, distinguished from bradykinesia by the absence rather than slowness of motion.
akinetic mutism
A neurological syndrome characterized by profound apathy and lack of voluntary movement or speech despite preserved cons...
akinetic rigid syndrome
A movement disorder characterized by both severe reduction of movement (akinesia) and muscle stiffness (rigidity). Most...
alexia
Acquired reading disorder resulting from brain injury, distinct from developmental dyslexia.
anisocoria
Unequal pupil sizes, which may indicate neurological pathology or be a benign variant.
anosognosia
Denial or lack of awareness of neurological deficits, typically following right hemisphere stroke.
apallic syndrome
A state of apparent wakefulness without awareness, also known as persistent vegetative state. Patients show sleep-wake c...
aphasia
Language disorder affecting speech, writing, or comprehension following brain injury, commonly documented in stroke asse...
arachnoid cyst
A benign fluid-filled sac that develops between the arachnoid membrane and the brain or spinal cord.
astereognosis
The inability to recognize objects through touch alone despite intact basic tactile sensation.
asterixis
Brief, irregular lapses of sustained muscle contraction, classically seen as a flapping tremor when arms are extended.
ataxia
Loss of coordination and balance due to dysfunction of the cerebellum or its connections.
Babinski sign
An abnormal plantar reflex indicating upper motor neuron dysfunction, characterized by dorsiflexion of the great toe.
bradykinesia
Slowness of movement characteristic of Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders.
carotid stenosis
Narrowing of the carotid arteries supplying blood to the brain, a major risk factor for stroke. Severity is typically qu...
cataplexy
Sudden, brief episodes of muscle weakness or paralysis triggered by strong emotions, pathognomonic of narcolepsy type 1....
chorea
Involuntary, irregular, flowing movements that appear to dance from one body part to another.
constructional apraxia
Inability to copy or construct geometric designs and spatial configurations despite intact vision and motor function. In...
corpus callosotomy
A surgical procedure involving division of the corpus callosum to treat intractable epilepsy.
CSF pleocytosis
Abnormal increase in white blood cells in cerebrospinal fluid, indicating inflammation or infection.
DaTscan
A specialized nuclear medicine imaging study using dopamine transporter SPECT to evaluate the integrity of dopaminergic...