Neural Circuits (Nursing)

00:00 So now let's switch gears and talk about neural circuits.

00:04 A neural circuit is a functional group of neurons that process specific types of information.

00:11 There are four different types of neural circuits.

00:15 We have diverging circuits, converging circuits, reverberating circuits, and parallel after-discharge circuits.

00:27 In a divergent neural circuit, we have one incoming fiber that is going to trigger multiple outgoing fibers.

00:38 Conversely, in a convergent neural circuit, the opposite happens where you have multiple incoming and one outgoing.

00:49 In a reverberating neural circuit, each neuron on the pathway will actually link back to the previous neuron.

01:00 This happens in processes that are rhythmic such as breathing or your sleep-wake cycle.

01:07 Finally, we have parallel after-discharge circuits.

01:13 In this process, a divergent and convergent neural circuits are going to result in a burst of impulses.

01:22 This burst is referred to as after-discharge.

01:27 This is usually going to take place in complex mental processing such as trying to figure out a difficult math problem or trying to learn all of human anatomy and physiology.