TouchBy: Hayley, Jennifer, Anton

Essential Questions

Can you explain an example of touch or skin related disorder?

Can you notice the differences between vestibular, kinesthetic and cutaneous sense?

Vestibular Sense Vestibular Sense- a

sensory system located in structures of the inner ear that registers the orientation of the head

Inner ear- The semicircular canals and cochlea, which form the organs of balance and hearing and are inside the temporal bone.

Semicircular canals-Three fluid-filled channels in the inner ear and they provide information about maintaining balance

Utricle- The larger of the two fluid-filled cavities forming part of the maze of the inner ear

Somato Sensory Cortex- A strip of the parietal lobe which controls the sense of touch

Kinesthetic Sense

Kinesthetic sense- the sense of body position and movement of body parts relative to each other

Also called kinesthesis Provides constant sensory

feedback about what your muscles in your body are doing motor activities

The receptors for kinesthetic are in your joints, muscles, and tendons

The process happens naturally without any thought- Unless you are purposely learning movements for a new physical skill, like learning a new dance trick or swinging a golf club› This sense tells you which

hand is closer to the phone when it rings

› Makes you aware of you crossing your legs

› Tells you whether to continue reaching for your cup before you knock it over

Kinesthetic Sense

Phantom Limb- the sensation that an amputated or missing limb is still attached to the body and is moving appropriately with other body parts but it’s not physically there› 2 out of 3 combat veterans report this

feeling This part of the brain is found in the

parietal lobe

Cutaneous Sense Cutaneous Sense- the faculty by

which external objects or forces are perceived through contact with the body

Pain- dominates all other senses› Dealing with the pain- aspirin,

ibuprofen, prescription narcotics- Morphine- mimics Endorphins

› Pain tolerance- one study showed that people who were given the same electric shock, some were unaffected by it, where some felt a very painful sensation

› Brain scans of people who have a very low tolerance for pain have a very active thalamus than people who have a high tolerance

Gate Control Theory- An explanation for pain control that proposes that we have a neural “gate” that can, under some circumstances block incoming pain signals

Cutaneous Receptors

Cutaneous Receptors- A type of sensory receptor found in the dermis or epidermis. They are a part of the somatosensory system.

Cutaneous receptors include cutaneous mechanoreceptors, nociceptors (pain) and thermo receptors (temperature).

Mechanoreceptors- A sense organ or cell that responds to mechanical stimuli such as touch or sound

Thermoreceptors- a sensory receptor that responds to hot and cold

Nocireceptors- receptors that are sensitive to pain

CU

TAN

EO

US

SEN

SE This illustrates the different types of Mechanoreceptors

Common Sensory Disorders

Julie Malloy- Hereditary sensory neuropathy type 2 (HSN2), a genetic disorder so rare that only 50 cases were reported in medical literature as of 2004› http://www.ydr.com/ci_15326760

Acupuncture and Lamaze

Acupuncture- A system of complementary medicine that involves pricking the skin or tissues with needles, used to alleviate pain and to treat various physical, mental, and emotional conditions

Lamaze- relating to a method of childbirth involving exercises and breathing control to give pain relief without drugs