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- Bell p. paresis or paralysis, usually unilateral, of the facial muscles, caused by dysfunction of the 7th cranial nerve; probably due to a viral infection; usually demyelinating in type. SYN: peripheral facial paralysis.
- birth p. motor and sensory deficits that result from nerve fiber injury associated with delivery; the brachial plexus is the region most commonly affected. Examples include Erb p. and Klumpke p..
- cerebral p. a generic term for various types of nonprogressive motor dysfunction present at birth or beginning in early childhood. Causes are both hereditary and acquired; depending upon cause, classified as intrauterine, natal, and early postnatal; motor disturbances include diplegia, hemiplegia, quadriplegia, choreoathetosis, and ataxia.
- Dejerine-Klumpke p. SYN: Klumpke p..
- diver's p. SYN: decompression sickness.
- double elevator p. limited elevation of an eye in abduction and adduction, implying paresis of the superior rectus and inferior oblique muscles, although many cases are due to restriction of the inferior rectus muscle.
- Erb p. a type of obstetric p. in which there is paralysis of the muscles of the upper arm and shoulder girdle (deltoid, biceps, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles) caused by a lesion of the upper trunk of the brachial plexus or of the roots of the fifth and sixth cervical roots. SYN: Duchenne-Erb paralysis, Erb paralysis.
- Klumpke p. a type of obstetric p. in which there is paralysis of the muscles of the distal forearm and hand (all ulnar innervated muscles, plus more distal radial and median-innervated muscles), caused by a lesion of the lower trunk of the brachial plexus, or of the C8 and T1 cervical roots. SYN: Dejerine-Klumpke p., Dejerine-Klumpke syndrome, Klumpke paralysis.
- lead p. a peculiar type of reputedly toxic neuropathy, resulting from lead intoxication, consisting of bilateral weakness of wrist and finger extensor muscles that is presumably due to bilateral radial neuropathies. Although often mentioned, apparently no verified cases have been described in the modern medical literature. SYN: lead paralysis.
- obstetric p. a brachial plexus lesion sustained by the infant during the birthing process; three types are recognized: 1) upper plexus type, affecting the shoulder and upper arm (Erb p., q.v., by far the most common form); 2) total plexus type, involving the whole arm; 3) lower plexus type, involving the forearm and hand (Klumpke p., q.v.). SYN: brachial birth p., obstetric paralysis.
- posticus p. paralysis of the cricoarytenoideus posticus muscle, resulting in the vocal cord being held in or near the midline.
- progressive bulbar p. one of the subgroups of motor neuron disease; a progressive degenerative disorder of the motor neurons of primarily the brainstem, manifested as weakness (and wasting) of the various bulbar muscles, resulting in dysarthria and dysphagia—fluid regurgitation is an outstanding symptom and can cause aspiration; tongue weakness and wasting are usually evident, and often the fasciculation potentials are present in the tongue and facial muscles. SYN: glossopalatolabial paralysis, glossopharyngeolabial paralysis.
- progressive supranuclear p. a progressive neurologic disorder in the sixth decade characterized by a supranuclear paralysis of vertical gaze, retraction of eyelids, exophoria under cover, dysarthria, and dementia. SYN: Steele-Richardson-Olszewski disease, Steele-Richardson-Olszewski syndrome.
- scrivener's p. SYN: writer's cramp.
- shaking p., trembling p. SYN: parkinsonism (1).
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2) a condition that is characterized by uncontrollable tremor or quivering of the body or one or more of its parts not used technically
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n.
paralysis. This archaic word is retained in compound terms, such as Bell's palsy, cerebral palsy, and Todd's paralysis (or palsy).
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pal·sy (pawlґze) paralysis.Medical dictionary. 2011.