{"id":15184,"date":"2020-09-14T00:49:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-14T04:49:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=15184"},"modified":"2020-10-01T12:19:03","modified_gmt":"2020-10-01T16:19:03","slug":"what-is-a-spinal-tap-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/what-is-a-spinal-tap-test\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Spinal Tap Test Used For in Brain on Fire?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is a spinal tap test? How is it used in Brain on Fire<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A spinal tap test takes fluid from around the brain and spinal cord. It is a diagnostic tool used to help figure out what is and isn’t going on with Susannah Cahalan and her mysterious illness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read on to understand the answer to the question “what is a spinal tap test?” and how it helped doctors diagnose Susannah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What Is a Spinal Tap Test Used For?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As Susannah continues to deteriorate physically, her psychosis seems to recede. She begins to spend most of her time staring off into space. On her fifth day in the hospital, the doctors seize on Susannah\u2019s passivity to give her a spinal tap.\u00a0But what is a spinal tap test?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a spinal tap, doctors use a needle to withdraw fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord. The patient must remain completely still to avoid injury; movement can cause paralysis or death. Susannah\u2019s psychotic states had made the necessary procedure too dangerous to attempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susannah has been in the hospital for nearly a week. Stephen and her family continue their routine of staying in the hospital with her every day, hours on end, feeding her gourmet food, reading aloud to her, or playing cards, though she\u2019s usually too confused to follow the game. Her mother makes sure the best doctors visit regularly.<\/strong> The staff allows Stephen to stay long past visiting hours because his presence calms Susannah and keeps her from escaping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He plays a country music video for her in the hope that the music will bring her back, but in reality, her short-term memory has been destroyed\u2014 each time she watches the video, it\u2019s like she\u2019s seeing it for the first time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a spinal tap test result used to show? Dr. Siegel informs Susannah\u2019s mom that Susannah\u2019s spinal tap shows an elevated number of white blood cells. This is usually a sign of infection or inflammation and indicates that Susannah\u2019s illness is physiological rather than emotional in nature. The news finally gives Susannah\u2019s mom a clue she can wrap her head around. She spends the rest of the evening Googling medical terms like \u201cmeningitis\u201d and \u201cmultiple sclerosis.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Siegel, the physician on whom Susannah\u2019s mom has pinned her hopes, quits Susannah\u2019s team. Susannah\u2019s mom is devastated. She now believes that Dr. Russo is their only hope\u2014until Russo brings up the name of a Dr. Souhel Najjar<\/a>, the doctor to call when nothing makes sense. Both Russo and Najjar order a second spinal tap for Susannah.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is a spinal tap test? How is it used in Brain on Fire? A spinal tap test takes fluid from around the brain and spinal cord. It is a diagnostic tool used to help figure out what is and isn’t going on with Susannah Cahalan and her mysterious illness. Read on to understand the answer to the question “what is a spinal tap test?” and how it helped doctors diagnose Susannah.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":15333,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[40,16],"tags":[130],"class_list":["post-15184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-books","category-health","tag-brain-on-fire","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Is a Spinal Tap Test Used For in Brain on Fire? - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is a spinal tap test? 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