Conditions of the brain and nervous system
Explanations of common neurological, mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions: what they are, what happens in the brain, how they are studied and how they are treated.
Neurological conditions
MigraineMigraine is a common, long-term brain disorder that causes repeated attacks of moderate or severe headache, often with nausea and sensitivity to light and sound.EpilepsyEpilepsy is a long-term brain condition in which a person has an enduring tendency to have seizures, brief episodes caused by bursts of abnormal electrical activity in the brain.StrokeA stroke happens when the blood supply to part of the brain is suddenly blocked or a blood vessel in the brain bursts, so that brain cells are starved of oxygen and begin to die.Alzheimer’s diseaseAlzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disease that gradually damages memory, thinking and the ability to carry out everyday tasks.Parkinson’s diseaseParkinson's disease is a progressive disorder of the nervous system in which nerve cells that make dopamine, a chemical messenger involved in movement, are gradually lost.Multiple sclerosisMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a long-term condition in which the immune system attacks the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves, damaging myelin, the fatty layer that insulates nerve fibres.DementiaDementia is an umbrella term for conditions in which progressive damage to the brain impairs memory, thinking, behaviour and the ability to manage everyday life.Huntington’s diseaseHuntington's disease is an inherited condition in which nerve cells in parts of the brain gradually break down, causing involuntary movements and progressive changes in thinking, mood and behaviour.Peripheral neuropathyPeripheral neuropathy is damage to the peripheral nerves, the network that carries signals between the brain and spinal cord and the rest of the body.
Neurodevelopmental conditions
Cerebral palsyCerebral palsy is a group of lifelong conditions affecting movement and posture, caused by a non-progressive injury to, or difference in, the developing brain before, during or soon after birth.AutismAutism is a lifelong difference in how the brain develops that affects how a person communicates and relates to others, and how they experience the world, including sensations such as sound, light and touch.
Mental health conditions
DepressionDepression is a common mental health condition in which low mood or loss of interest and pleasure persists for weeks or longer and affects how a person feels, thinks and manages daily life.Bipolar disorderBipolar disorder is a long-term mental health condition in which a person experiences episodes of depression and periods of abnormally elevated or irritable mood, called mania or the milder hypomania, usually with stable periods in between.SchizophreniaSchizophrenia is a long-term mental health condition that affects how a person thinks, perceives and experiences reality, and can cause psychosis, in which it becomes hard to tell what is real.
Infections of the nervous system
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