Brain Anatomy Overview

The brain is one of the most complex structures in the human body and, therefore, when the brain is injured  many strange and serious symptoms may occur.  By looking at basic brain anatomy and the functions that each area of the brain control, the symptoms resulting from the brain injury may be explained and understood.  Although an injury may have occurred in a specific area, most brain injuries impact multiple areas of the brain.  The main regions of the brain are the cerebellum, the brain stem, and the cerebrum.

Cerebellum: The cerebellum is located in the hindbrain and controls coordination, voluntary movement and balance.  If injured, the cerebellum may produce symptoms including tremors, involuntary eye movements, poor muscle coordination (also known as ataxia), slurred speech, vertigo, and the inability to make quick movements or to grab objects.  Injury to this area of the brain makes basic tasks very difficult such as walking, eating or talking.

Brainstem: The brainstem connects the brain to the spinal cord and controls necessary survival functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, digestion, attention, concentration and the ability to be awake and alert.  The brain's twelve cranial nerves are based in the brain stem and run throughout the brain.  Any possible injury to the brainstem must be treated by a doctor immediately to reduce risk of coma, long term symptoms, or even death.  Less severe symptoms resulting from a brainstem injury include insomnia, vertigo, balance and movement problems, perception difficulties, dysphaia, or difficulty breathing.

Frontal Lobe: The frontal lobe is located in the front section of the brain and controls thought processes such as organization, planning, problem solving, selective attention, flexible thinking, mood changes, sequencing, focusing, language expression (also known as Broca's Aphasia when injured) and even personality (located in the prefrontal cortex to be specific).

Occipital Lobe: The occipital lobe is located at the back of the head and is responsible for processing visual information.  Damage to this area most commonly results in visual disturbances such as hallucinations, reading and writing difficulties, and a difficulty with identifying colors, words, movements and objects.

Parietal Lobes: The parietal lobes, also home to the primary sensory cortex, are located in close to the back and top of the skull and control functions such as sensation and the judgement of various sensations.  Damage to the right parietal lobe results in poor navigational skills and the ability to recognize locations and damage to the left parietal lobe results in a diminished ability to comprehend spoken and written languages.

Temporal Lobes: The temporal lobes are located on each side of the brain near the ears and control functions such as the absorption of new information, short-term memory, verbal memory or visual memory.  Damage to these lobes may result in symptoms that include prosopagnosia (or the inability to recognize faces), short-term memory loss, increased aggression, long-term memory loss and a difficulty with categorization and identification.