Simon was in a snowmobile accident during which he suffered a head injury. Days later he had an appointment with his doctor, who told him that there were signs of a brain injury. Pretend that you are the doctor and explain what functional impairments might result from a damage to the following parts of the brain: • Cerebellum - • Medulla - • Hypothalamus - • Hippocampus - • Parietal lobe of the cerebral cortex - • Temporal lobe of the cerebral cortex- • Serotonin receptors -

 • Cerebellum-

*Cerebellum is the most important part of the brain and has main role in physical movement.

*Impairment in cerebellum leads to movement and coordination difficulties and disturbances in muscle control.

*The functional impairments of damaged cerebellum includes difficulty in mobility and walking,abnormal eye movement,ataxia (lack of muscle control and coordination),vertigo (sensation of spinning), tremors (involuntary muscle contractions).

Step-by-step explanation

 • Cerebellum-

*Cerebellum is the most important part of the brain and has main role in physical movement.

*Impairment in cerebellum leads to movement and coordination difficulties and disturbances in muscle control.

*The functional impairments of damaged cerebellum includes difficulty in mobility and walking,abnormal eye movement,ataxia (lack of muscle control and coordination),vertigo (sensation of spinning), tremors (involuntary muscle contractions).

  • Medulla-

*Medulla oblongata connects brain to the spinal cord and it consists of sensory and motor fibres.

*If medulla is damaged then brain and spinal cord cannot transmit information into each other effectively.

*Functional impairments of damaged medulla includes breathing difficulties,loss of muscle control,difficulty in swallowing,loss of sensation in limbs,trunk and face,balance problems,loss of sneeze,cough and gag reflex and loss of muscle control.

 • Hypothalamus-

*Hypothalamus is small and important area in centre of brain.

*The main role of hypothalamus is production of hormones and maintain homeostasis, temperature regulation, regulating fluid balance and blood pressure and controlling appetite.

*Functional impairments of damaged hypothalamus includes imbalance in homeostasis, disorders like diabetes mellitus, hypopitutarism and Prader-Willi syndrome.

 • Hippocampus

*Hippocampus is small curved formation in brain and plays important role in limbic system.

*The function of hippocampus is formation,organisation and storage of new memories.

*The functional impairments of damaged hippocampus are inability to remember directions,locations and orientation, inability to form nee memories,affected spatial memory.

  • Parietal lobe of the cerebral cortex-

*parietal lobe is major lobe in brain and its function is to process sensory information.

*It coordinates,processes and interprets the sensory information and construction of spatial coordinate system.

*Damage to parietal lobe leads to dysfunction in senses.

*The functional impairments of damaged parietal lobe includes difficulty in reading,writing and drawing objects , difficulty in differentiating between left and right,difficulty in hand and eye coordination and loss of spatial awareness.

• Temporal lobe-

*The function of temporal lobe is processing auditory information and encoding memories. It helps in understanding and processing of speech and language.

*Functional impairments of damaged hippocampus includes difficulty in recognising faces, identifying objects,impaired memory,difficulty in understanding spoken words and personality changes.

 • Serotonin receptors-

*Serotonin receptors are 5 HT receptors and they are found in central and peripheral nervous system.

*The function of these receptors is mediating inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission.

*The functional impairments of damaged serotonin receptors includes anxiety, impulsive behaviour,aggression,irritability,insomnia,poor memory,low self esteem and poor appetite.