Brain Injury Terms and Definitions

Gastrointestinal Birth Defect
Esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula, intestinal atresia, biliary atresia

stroke
A condition produced by a blood clot that lodges in an artery and blocks the flow of blood to a portion of the brain, producing symptoms ranging from paralysis of limbs and loss of speech to unconsciousness and death. Less commonly, a stroke may be the result of bleeding into the substance of the brain.

Orofacial Birth Defect
Choanal atresia, cleft lip, cleft palate

closed head injury
An injury to the head or brain in which the skull remains intact.

Apert syndrome
Apert Syndrome is a genetic defect and falls under the broad classification of craniofacial/limb anomalies. It can be inherited from a parent who has Apert, or may be a fresh mutation. It occurs in approximately 1 per 160,000 to 200,000 live births. Apert syndrome is primarily characterized by specific malformations of the skull, midface, hands, and feet.

hippocampus
Part of the brain that assists in storing memory by sorting and sending new bits of information to be stored in appropriate sections of your brain and recalling them when necessary.

CBDMP
California Birth Defects Monitoring Program

cerebellum
The portion of the brain mainly responsible for balance and coordination.

vascular dementia
A common form of dementia that results either from narrowing and blockage of the arteries that supply blood to the brain or by strokes that cause an interruption of blood flow within the brain.

aneurysm
The localized enlargement of a blood vessel, usually an artery, that forms a bulge or sac.