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nerve impulse

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.03 sec.
impulse /im·pulse/ (im´puls)
1. a sudden pushing force.
2. a sudden uncontrollable determination to act.

cardiac impulse  movement of the chest wall caused by the heart beat.
ectopic impulse 
1. the impulse that causes an ectopic beat.
2. a pathologic nerve impulse that begins in the middle of an axon and proceeds simultaneously towards the cell body and the periphery.
nerve impulse  the electrochemical process propagated along nerve fibers.

nerve impulse
n.
A wave of physical and chemical excitation that moves along a nerve fiber in response to a stimulus.

nerve impulse.
See impulse.

impulse [im´puls]
1. a sudden pushing force.
2. a sudden uncontrollable determination to act.
cardiac impulse a heartbeat palpated over the left side of the chest at the apex of the heart. See also point of maximal impulse.
impulse control disorders a group of mental disorders characterized by repeated failure to resist an impulse to perform some act harmful to oneself or to others. In spite of the act's being socially unacceptable or inconsistent with the rest of the person's personality or lifestyle, he or she feels pleasure or emotional release upon doing it. Disorders in this category include intermittent explosive disorder, kleptomania, pathological gambling, pyromania, and trichotillomania.
nerve impulse the electrochemical process propagated along nerve fibers.

impulse,
n a surge of electric current for a short time span; e.g., in a 60-cycle AC current, there are 120 impulses per second. See also impression, maxillary.
impulse, muscle,
n a wave of excitation along a muscle fiber initiated at the neuromuscular endplate; accompanied by chemical and electrical changes at the surface of the muscle fiber and by activation of the contractile elements of the muscle fiber; detectable electronically (electromyographically); and followed by a transient refractory period.
impulse, nerve,
n a wave of excitation along a nerve fiber initiated by a stimulus; accompanied by chemical and electrical changes at the surface of the nerve fiber and followed by a transient refractory period during which further stimulation has no effect.

impulse
1. a sudden pushing force.
2. a sudden uncontrollable act.
3. a nerve impulse.

cardiac impulse
movement of the chest wall caused by the heartbeat. Called also apex beat.
nerve impulse
the electrochemical process propagated along nerve fibers.


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A muscle contracts when ordered so to do by a nerve impulse.
Beta-blockers play an important role in reducing the nerve impulses 3.
It also controls the nerve impulses and muscle contractions.
 
 
 
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