The neurologic examination is performed during every single consultation with a veterinary neurologist, such as Dr. Moeser. The neuro exam is performed to answer several basic questions:
- Does the patient have a neurologic problem
- If the patient has a neurologic problem, does it involve the central nervous system, the peripheral nervous system, or both.
- If the central nervous system is implicated, the neuro exam helps neurolocalize which part of the CNS is affected.
Neurolocalization helps the neurologist make a differential list, and helps determine which part of the CNS should be imaged if advanced imaging (MRI or CT) is recommended. When the brain is implicated by the history and/or neuro exam, the location may be the prosencephalon, the brain stem, the cerebellum, or involve multiple parts of the brain (multifocal intracranial).
The spine is divided into four segments: C1-C5, C6-T2, T3-L3, and L4-S3. The C stands for cervical, the T for thoracic and L for lumbar. The number corresponds to the spinal cord segment in that anatomic region. Just like with brain neurolocalization, diseases involving the spinal cord can have a multifocal nature and involve more than one of the above segments.
