Motor Unit Disorders
Basic functional unit of the peripheral nervous system.
What is the motor unit?
This concept refers to remaining in your home as you age.
What is aging in place?
Loss of half of the visual field in both eyes.
What is hemianopsia?
This cognitive domain includes planning, sequencing, and problem-solving.
What is executive function?
This phase involves chewing and preparing the bolus.
What is the oral phase?
Compression of median nerve at wrist causes this condition.
What is carpal tunnel syndrome?
This insurance covers most adults over 65.
What is Medicare?
Inability to attend to one side of the body or environment.
What is unilateral neglect?
This assessment is commonly used in SNF to screen cognition quickly.
What is the MoCA? (or MMSE/Short Blessed)
Coughing during meals is a sign of this.
What is aspiration (or aspiration risk)?
Rapid onset paralysis due to autoimmune attack.
What is Guillain-Barré syndrome?
In this stage, older adults reflect on their life experiences and sense of purpose, which can be influenced by continued engagement in meaningful roles and activities.
What is Integrity vs. Despair?
This visual skill is required to follow a moving object smoothly.
What are pursuits?
Difficulty initiating a task despite understanding it is called this.
What is impaired initiation?
This is the BEST initial action if a patient shows signs of aspiration during a session.
Stop feeding and notify appropriate medical team
Client is stronger in the morning and fatigues. What condition?
What is myasthenia gravis?
Name ONE major fall risk factor in older adults.
Balance deficits, cognition, vision, weakness, etc.
A patient consistently misses food on the left side of the plate. What deficit is MOST likely?
What is left neglect?
A patient completes a task but does it unsafely and without awareness. This deficit is:
What is poor safety awareness / impaired insight?
Thickened liquids are used to address what problem?
What is delayed swallow / poor airway protection?
Why must strengthening be used cautiously in GBS?
Risk of fatigue and nerve irritation
Why is leisure important for older adults in OT?
Supports cognition, social participation, and quality of life
Why is visual scanning training more effective than simply telling a patient to “look left”?
Requires active cognitive engagement and promotes carryover into functional tasks
Why might a patient score “normal” on a cognitive screen but still be unsafe at home?
Screens don’t capture functional cognition or real-world task performance
Why is positioning critical during feeding for patients with dysphagia?
Reduces aspiration risk and improves swallow safety