This post will discuss brain anatomy and function. The areas of the brain that will be discussed will be referred to in the diagram above. Our source for information for this post is Omega Medical Associates, a multidisciplinary assessment clinic, that specializes in catastrophic impairment assessments.
The key areas of the brain that you should be aware of when it comes to functioning are the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, temporal lobe, cerebellum and brain stem.
A brain injury is life-altering. Symptoms of a brain injury can vary depending on the area of the brain affected. The Guide to Brain Anatomy & Function provided by Omega Medical Associates lists the anatomical regions of the brain, their functions and symptoms of impairments.
We have provided the descriptions below.
The Frontal Lobe:
Function: The frontal lobe is responsible for executive functioning and judgments, emotional response and stability, language and memory. It is integral to personality, involved in tracking, sense of self, arousal and awareness of environment.
Symptoms of Impairment:
- Changes in personality and social behaviour
- Loss of spontaneity in interaction with others
- Sequencing (difficulty planning and completing tasks in correct order)
- Perseveration (repeating same actions and comments over with conscious awareness of having done so)
- Loss in flexibility in thinking (mental rigidity)
- Distractibility
- Mood swings
- Diminished abstract reasoning
- Difficulty with problem solving
- Language difficulties (usage and word finding)
- Loss of simple movement of various body parts
The Parietal Lobe:
Function: The parietal lobe is involved in visual perception, tactile perception, integration of sensory information that allows for understanding of concepts, and goal-directed voluntary movements.
Symptoms of Impairment:
- Difficulty naming objects
- Difficulty writing words
- Inability to attend to more than one object at a time
- Inability to focus visual attention
- Problems with reading
- Poor hand-eye coordination
- Confusion of right-left orientation
- Difficulty performing math calculations
- Difficulty drawing
- Lack of awareness of certain body parts and/or surrounding space
The Occipital Lobe:
Function: The occipital lobe is the visual perception system.
Symptoms of Impairment:
Impaired vision
The Temporal Lobe:
Function: The Temporal Lobe plays a key role in intellect, as well as auditory perception, long-term memory and some visual perception.
Symptoms of Impairment:
- Difficulty remembering names and faces
- Difficulty understanding spoken words
- Difficulty with identification of, and verbalization about objects
- Difficulty with concentration
- Short-term memory loss
- Interference with long-term memory
- Aggressive behaviour
- Change in sexual interest
- Persistent talking (right lobe damage)
- Difficulty with the location of objects in environment
- Inability to categorize objects
- Seizure disorders, auras and strange reveries
The Cerebellum:
Function: The cerebellum is involved in coordination and control of voluntary movement, balance and muscle tone.
Symptoms of Impairment:
- Tremors
- Involuntary movement of eye (nystagmus)
- Lack of coordination (ataxia)
- Weak muscles (hypotonic)
- Inability to judge distance (dysmetria)
- Inability to perform rapid altering movements
- Slurred speech (ataxic dysarthria)
The Brain Stem:
Function: The brain stem plays a role in heart rate, swallowing, reflexes to sight and sound, seating, blood pressure, digestion, temperature, levels of alertness, ability to sleep, and balance.
Symptoms of Impairment:
- Decreased breathing vital capacity
- Difficulty swallowing food and water
- Difficulty with organization/perception of environment
- Problems with balance and movement
- Dizziness and nausea
- Sleeping and nausea
Aaron Waxman & Associates is a Toronto Personal Injury Law Firm handling various types of personal injury claims including catastrophic claims, car accident claims, critical illness claims, long term disability claims, slip and fall cases and wrongful death claims.