Medical terms relevant to disability assessment

Neurological deficit – an abnormal physical finding such as paralysis or loss of sensation.

Hemiparesis – paralysis of one side of the body e.g. an arm and a leg on the same side. Dense hemiparesis or hemiplegia means no movement at all on the affected side - such a person would definitely not be able to walk unaided.

Dysarthria – a muscle/ nerve weakness causing difficulty speaking or making themselves understood – slurred or slow speech.

Dysphasia – a complex disorder of language processing; both understanding and expression can be affected differently in the same person; language breakdown can be at any level; may include difficulties with reading, writing and numeracy.

Aphasia – an inability to understand or to speak at all.

Cranial nerve palsy – paralysis of one of the 12 cranial nerves that arise directly from the brain and control many motor, sensory and autonomic functions such as; vision (optic nerve), eye movements including the pupil, facial movements and sensation (facial and trigeminal nerves), swallow, taste and speech.