Shaken Baby Syndrome : Tests

To diagnose SBS, physicians look for at least one of three classic conditions: bleeding at the back of one or both eyes (retinal hemorrhage), subdural hematoma, or cerebral edema. The diagnosis is confirmed by the results of either a computed tomo...

To diagnose SBS, physicians look for at least one of three classic conditions: bleeding at the back of one or both eyes (retinal hemorrhage), subdural hematoma, and cerebral edema. The diagnosis is confirmed by the results of either a computed tom...

Diagnosis depends on the detection of a blood clot below the inner layer of the dura (a membrane that surrounds the brain), but external to the brain. The clot is also known as a subdural hematoma. Two other critical features of shaken baby syndro...

A cranial CT scan is computed tomography of the head, including the skull, brain, orbits (eye sockets), and sinuses.

Head injury is an injury to the scalp, skull, or brain. The most important consequence of head trauma is traumatic brain injury.

Injury to the head may damage the scalp, skull or brain. The most important consequence of head trauma is traumatic brain injury.

Computed tomography (also known as CT, CT scan, CAT, or computerized axial tomography) scans use x rays to produce precise cross-sectional images of anatomical structures. With the development of modern computers, the scans enhanced digital capabilities allowed the development of computed tomography imaging (derived from the Greek tomos , meaning " to slice " ).

CT imaging equipment includes conventional, spiral, multi-slice, and electron-beam computed tomography full-body scanners, which use x rays to acquire cross-sectional images and computer workstations to reconstruct acquired image data for display on a viewing monitor or printed on film. Also referred to as computerized axial tomography (CAT) scanning equipment.

Computed tomography (CT) scans are completed with the use of a 360-degree x-ray beam and computer production of images. These scans allow for cross- sectional views of body organs and tissues.

Injury to the head may damage the scalp, skull , or brain . The most important consequence of head injury is traumatic brain injury.

Computed tomography (CT) scans are completed with the use of a 360-degree x-ray beam and computer production of images. These scans allow for cross-sectional views of body organs and tissues.

During a physical examination, a health care provider studies a patient's body to determine the presence or absence of physical problems. A typical physical examination includes: Inspection (looking at the body) Palpation (feeling the body with hands) Auscultation (listening to sounds) Percussion (producing sounds)

An MRI of the head is a non-invasive procedure that uses powerful magnets and radio waves to construct clear, detailed pictures of brain tissues. Unlike conventional radiography and computed tomography (CT), which make use of potentially harmful x-rays passing through a patient to generate images, MRI imaging is based on the magnetic properties of atoms. A powerful magnet generates a magnetic field roughly 10,000 times stronger than the Earth's. A very small percentage of hydrogen atoms within the body will align with this field. The "nuclear" in the original name (nuclear magnetic resonance imaging) -- now seldom used -- refers to the proton in the nucleus of the hydrogen atom and does not imply radioactivity. When focused short radio wave pulses are broadcast towards the aligned hydrogen atoms in tissues of interest, they will return a signal of their own. The subtle differences in that signal from dissimilar tissues enables the MRI to differentiate between various organs, and potentially, provide contrast between benign and malignant (cancerous) tissue. Any imaging plane, or slice, can be projected, and then stored in a computer or printed on film. MRI is easily performed through clothing and bones. However, certain types of metal in or around the area of interest can cause significant errors in the reconstructed images. These errors are called artifacts.

Like all other parts of the body, the brain and central nervous system are made up of cells that ordinarily grow and divide to create new cells as needed. This is usually an orderly process; but when cells lose their ability to grow normally or to die off naturally, they divide too often and produce tumors that are made up of these extra cells.

Part of the central nervous system located in the skull. Controls mental and physical actions of the organism.

Congenital brain defects are a group of disorders of brain development that are present at birth. Brain development begins shortly after conception and continues throughout the growth of a fetus.

Brain abscess is a bacterial infection within the brain. The brain is usually well insulated from infection by bacteria, protected by the skull, the meninges (tissue layers surrounding the brain), the immune system, and the highly regulated barrier between the bloodstream and the brain.

A brain biopsy is the removal of a small piece of brain tissue for the diagnosis of abnormalities of the brain, such as Alzheimer ' s disease , tumors, infection, or inflammation. Purpose By examining the tissue sample under a microscope, the biopsy sample provides doctors with the information necessary to guide diagnosis and treatment.

A brain tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue in the brain. Unlike other tumors, brain tumors spread by local extension and rarely metastasize (spread) outside the brain.

Congenital brain defects are a group of disorders of brain development. Brain development begins shortly after conception and continues throughout the growth of a fetus.

The brain is the part of the central nervous system located in the skull. It controls the mental processes and physical actions of a human being.

The brain is a large mass of soft nervous tissue made up of both neurons and supporting glial cells lying within the cranium of the skull. The brain contains both gray and white matter.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners rely on the principles of atomic nuclear-spin resonance. Using strong magnetic fields and radio waves, MRI collects and correlates deflections caused by atoms into images.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the result of physical trauma to the head causing damage to the brain. This damage can be focal, or restricted to a single area of the brain, or diffuse, affecting more than one region of the brain.

The brain is the part of the central nervous system (CNS) inside the skull (the part outside the skull is the spinal cord ). It gives rise to cognitive thought processes and controls various body functions including muscular activity, speech, sight, hearing , breathing, and digestion.

A brain tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue, either malignant (cancerous) or benign (noncancerous), in the brain. Each year, more than 17,000 brain tumors are diagnosed in the United States.