Intracranial bleeding is the result of a rupture in a cerebral vessel. As a consequence, certain structures of the brain are destroyed and its edema rapidly increases, which is a state of immediate life-threatening. What are the causes and symptoms of intracranial bleeding? How is the treatment going?

Intracranial bleedingis bleeding into the brain that is caused by a rupture of a vessel. Then, blood extravasates within the given brain structures, which results in their rapid destruction, which is a life-threatening condition.

Intracranial bleeding - causes and risk factors

Epidural hematomais most often caused by arterial bleeding and is usually the result of a head injury resulting in fracture of the skull bones.

Subdural hematoma(subdural bleeding) is caused by a venous haemorrhage that causes an accumulation of venous blood in the subdural space beneath the dura mater surrounding the brain.

The causes of intracranial bleeding are age-dependent. In children, vessel rupture can cause aneurysms, blood diseases (e.g. thrombocytopenia, leukemia, haemophilia) and also injuries.

In adolescents and young adults, high blood pressure is often the cause of intracranial bleeding, as well as alcohol and drugs. In middle-aged and elderly people, intracranial bleeding usually results from arterial hypertension, vascular malformation, aneurysms, inflammatory changes in the cerebral vessels, and brain tumors - both primary and metastatic from another organ.

Tumors that most frequently metastasize to the central nervous system and cause intracranial bleeding include bronchial cancer, melanoma, clear cell carcinoma of the kidney and thyroid cancer.

Factors that increase the risk of intracranial bleeding are obesity, diabetes, smoking, alcoholism, the use of drugs that impair blood clotting.

Intracranial bleeding - symptoms

The symptoms of a cerebral hemorrhage depend on the area the blood has entered. At first, there is severe headache, convulsions and vomiting. Then there is a hemiparesis on the opposite side of the bodyside of the brain where the stroke occurred. If the right hemisphere is affected by the stroke, abnormalities appear on the left side of the body and vice versa. The paresis develops slowly - at first, paresis of the facial muscles and speech disorders appear, and then the weakness of the upper and lower limbs, visual disturbances. Dizziness, loss of balance and loss of coordination also appear.

In the event of massive haemorrhage, coma occurs, with deep, irregular or intermittent breathing, pupil dilation, and stiffness.

Intracranial bleeding - diagnosis

Blood pressure is measured, brain CT scan, and if in doubt, brain MRI is performed. These last two studies show blood extruded into the brain.

Intracranial bleeding - treatment

The goal of treatment is to improve cerebral circulation, prevent re-bleeding, and reduce increased intracranial pressure and prevent cerebral edema. Therefore, pharmacological treatment is used (the patient is given drugs such as mannitol or furosemide). If there is a hemorrhage into the structures of the cerebellum, and the location of the hemorrhages is superficial, surgery is usually performed.

Category:

Neurology