home Audience 3 Cerebral infarction death. What is the difference between a cerebral infarction and a stroke? Treatment consists of systematic therapy

Cerebral infarction death. What is the difference between a cerebral infarction and a stroke? Treatment consists of systematic therapy

The diagnosis of cerebral infarction sounds scary, and this fear is justified, because the name hides a severe pathology, accompanied by ischemia of brain tissue and severe disorders, which often lead to disability, and in some cases can result in death.

Due to the high risk of getting sick, every person needs to know its main symptoms, in which case they need to urgently consult a doctor.

The mechanism of pathology development

Cerebral infarction develops due to complete violation patency of cerebral vessels, which results in acute ischemia of brain tissue.

Conditionally stages pathological process can be described like this:

Complete closure of the vascular lumen occurs foreign body(broken thrombus or atherosclerotic plaque).
Blocking the vessel leads to the cessation of access to the brain tissue of oxygen and nutrients.
Short-lived oxygen starvation brain cells (5 – 7 minutes) provokes softening and disruption cellular structure, causing irreversible changes in the area in which blood circulation is impaired.
Irreversible changes in cell structure lead to the development of motor, speech and some other functions.

The severity of the pathology and symptoms of the disorder depend on which cerebral artery has ceased to function fully and on the location of the ischemia.

Important! It can be argued that cerebral infarction is not detected very often and such a diagnosis is rarely heard of. But this is only due to the fact that neurologists prefer to use another name for this condition: ischemic stroke.

The main cause of the disease is blockage of a large vessel with a thrombus or atherosclerotic plaque that arises from various diseases vessels, less often the pathology is provoked by prolonged vascular spasm.

Signs for which you need to see a doctor

Signs of cerebral infarction can be divided into two groups - general and focal.

Are common

Regardless of the lesion site ischemic stroke observed:

confusion;
violation vestibular function(dizziness, double vision, loss of coordination);
decreased sensitivity and motor activity on one side of the body (paresis and paralysis);
slurred speech, developing due to partial or complete paralysis of the muscles of the tongue.

The signs can be clearly expressed or appear very weakly, but any of the described deviations should be a reason for immediate delivery of the patient to the hospital.

Focal

Each area of the brain is responsible for one or more functions (motor, visual, speech, etc.). Depending on the location of the ischemic focus, the patient may experience the following symptoms:

visual impairment (even blindness);
a sharp increase or decrease in A/D;
involuntary motor skills of the limb (the arm and leg move spontaneously regardless of the patient’s wishes);
difference in pupil size (on the affected side the pupil dilates and stops responding to light);
tachycardia;
spontaneous urination or defecation (this symptom is not very common).

For a pre-medical definition of the disease, this does not matter, but it is interesting to know that left-sided disorders occur when the right cerebral hemisphere is damaged, and right-sided ones occur when the left ischemia.

Regardless of the location of ischemia, any manifestations of the disease are dangerous and require immediate hospitalization of the patient in a hospital, and sometimes in the intensive care unit.

The course of the initial stage of stroke

The onset of the disease depends on the following:

the size of the artery in which the blood flow is disrupted;
the nature of the ischemic process.

Depending on the combination of these two characteristics, they distinguish the following types course of stroke:

Spicy. Symptoms increase quickly, within 1 – 2 hours. Often such patients are delivered by ambulance to unconscious in the intensive care unit. At acute stage development after recovery, the consequences of a stroke always remain in the form of impaired brain activity, paralysis and others.
Wavy. The deterioration of the condition occurs gradually and, if pathology is detected on initial stage development, it is almost possible full recovery all functions.
Tumor-like. According to the time of progression of symptoms, it is similar to wave-like. Only medical research will be able to recognize that in this case the main cause is not brain hypoxia, but progressive tissue edema and.

Advice to relatives of the sick person: if a person has an acute or gradual speech disorder, decreased motor activity and sensitivity disorder, then you should not delay in seeing a doctor! It is better to call an ambulance and hospitalize the person in a hospital. Seeing a doctor as early as possible is the key to recovery after an ischemic stroke.

Differential diagnosis

Cerebral infarction is first differentiated from the following conditions:

Hemorrhagic stroke. A malnutrition of brain tissue can develop due to a rupture of a blood supply vessel and blood entering the brain. A brain tissue hematoma resulting from hemorrhage is similar in manifestations to ischemic processes, but has a more unfavorable prognosis.
(ministroke or transient acute disorder cerebral circulation). Occurs due to occlusion of the main arteries or vasospasm. A transient attack differs from a stroke (stroke) in that it is reversible: after some time, stroke symptoms become more severe, and with a transient attack, a gradual restoration of all functions is observed.

To clarify the diagnosis, the doctor uses the following methods:

MRI. The procedure allows you to obtain complete data on all cerebral vessels and localize areas of ischemia.
Dopplerography (a type of ultrasound). Gives the same full information about vessels, as with MRI. A small disadvantage of the procedure: the need to use a special gel, which is difficult for a person with long hair.
Analysis cerebrospinal fluid for the presence of blood: if there is no blood and symptoms progress, then this is a cerebral infarction. Examination of cerebrospinal fluid allows, even if other examination methods are impossible, to differentiate ischemia from hemorrhage.
CT scan. This method is considered the most reliable for differentiating hemorrhages, strokes and transient attacks, but, unfortunately, the equipment is not available in all clinics.
Angiography. X-ray of blood vessels using contrast agent It is rarely used and is necessary only when preparing the patient for surgical treatment.

The diagnosis can be clarified within a few hours, because the prognosis of the disease depends on the speed of diagnosis and timely treatment.

Treatment of pathology

The sooner those around the sick person identify the occurring disorders and take the person to the hospital, the more favorable the prognosis for the restoration of body functions lost due to ischemia of brain tissue. Treatment methods include conservative and surgical.

Surgery

Surgical intervention to restore impaired arterial patency is done infrequently, and this is possible only in neurosurgical departments, where the following is performed to restore blood supply to the brain:

bypass;
stenting (installation of a vasodilator stent);
carotid endarterectomy (removal of a blood clot or atherosclerotic plaque along with part of the artery wall).

Brain surgery is performed very rarely and only in specialized clinics, conservative therapy is more often used.

Conservative treatment

The most important thing in case of a stroke is to restore impaired cerebral circulation.

For this use:

Anticoagulants. Heparin is one of the most commonly used blood thinning drugs.
Antiplatelet agents. A group of medications that prevent thrombosis and vascular obliteration.
Thrombolysis agents. Medicines that help dissolve already formed blood clots.

In addition, symptomatic therapy is carried out to eliminate any disturbances that have arisen in the body.

Important! After restoration of blood flow in the brain, patients require long-term rehabilitation to regain lost speech and motor activity.

Forecast

Unfortunately, according to medical statistics, if a cerebral infarction is detected, the prognosis is not very favorable:

more than 50% of cases result in disability - in some cases the patient becomes unable to care for himself and requires constant care;
about 15–20% of diagnosed cases are fatal;
about 4 - 5% of cases with complete and partial recovery can be complicated by epilepsy.

The sooner you apply for medical assistance, the more favorable the prognosis for the patient. At the first suspicion of an ischemic stroke, the patient should be taken to the hospital as quickly as possible for examination and treatment.

(also called stroke) is a disease that is often diagnosed. It affects young and old people. It happens that this serious illness affects even newborns. Due to a cerebral infarction, people can easily lose their ability to work. They experience complete or partial paralysis of the body, speech is impaired, and there are memory lapses. The person may well die. The statistics of this disease are very sad.

Vascular spasm of the brain

Why does this life-threatening disease occur?
Brain cells require oxygen to function normally. The disadvantage of this important element The periodic table greatly affects neurons. Cerebral infarction occurs due to blockage of blood vessels or a decrease in their lumen. Oxygen no longer reaches some parts of the organ in the required quantity. Because of this, ischemia of neurons is observed in a certain area of the organ. This phenomenon is irreversible. Hypoxia (lack of oxygen) is especially harmful to the cerebral cortex. Neurons that lack oxygen can die quickly. A few minutes are enough for this.
Causes of stroke
The brain has a branched unique circulatory system, which superbly supplies him nutrients and oxygen. Due to the occurrence of diseases, blood vessels work worse and worse. There is a change in structure vascular wall, blood clotting increases, blood flow slows down. The lumen of the blood vessels narrows or is closed by a fully formed blood clot or Causes of cerebral infarction:
fragments of tumor formations that arose during their disintegration;
air embolism;
thrombophlebitis of the legs, blood clot detachment;
fat embolism;
blood clots formed due to heart rhythm disturbances;
torn pieces of cholesterol plaque of blood vessels that clog the vessels;
developed atherosclerosis;
emerging systemic hypotension;
venous thrombosis;
polycythemia;
hyperproteinemia;
sickle cell anemia;
temporal arteritis.

Atherosclerosis
If a person suffers from hypertension, then vascular spasms occur because of it. As a result, the patient will suffer a stroke.

There is a list of ailments that can cause a cerebral infarction:
hypertension stages II and III;
long experience of consumption harmful substances(nicotine, alcohol, etc.);
various cardiovascular diseases;
diseases endocrine system person;
rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, etc.

Consequences of a stroke
very deplorable. Significant changes in health are observed. A person often can no longer live full life. Still, there are lucky ones who have regained some functions due to the passage of time. Some people were not very badly hurt after the attack. They continue to live almost fully. There is a difference between how they lived before and after the stroke, but there are no speech dysfunctions, the person can walk. The consequences are due to partial memory loss and rapid fatigue. If a person has suffered brain injury, the consequences can be reversible or irreversible. Possible violations different functions body, bad job its systems. There are disturbances in hearing, vision, speech, and swallowing. A person may experience disturbances in the functioning of the vestibular apparatus, motor, psychical deviations. The patient may also be diagnosed with:
paralysis of limbs;
paralysis of one or both sides of the body;
attention disorders;
the patient does not remember his previous life well;
loss of smell;
loss of sensation;
the patient is poorly oriented in space;
coma;
a person loses the ability to sense tactile sensations;
the patient is unable to perceive information.

Visual impairment
Consequences in the form of visual impairment appear due to damage to the posterior cerebral artery. A person may experience squint and see blurred. It happens that you see double. If you suffer due to a cerebral infarction left-hand side head, then visual disturbances are more noticeable with right side and vice versa. If the stroke affects the brain stem instead of the hemispheres, then there are motor ocular disorders.
Speech disorders

Speech Impairment
The consequences of a stroke in the form of speech disorders appear due to negative changes in the left hemisphere. Blood flow is changed in middle artery brain Sensory as well as motor aphasia is observed. With sensory aphasia, the patient retains the ability to speak. But his speech is meaningless. He is also unable to understand what others say. With motor aphasia, a person is able to understand what others are saying. However, he himself lost the ability to write and speak. After a stroke, after a while, the damaged one is restored. This happens often. But if the disease recurs, then the patient faces more extensive lesions, after which speech is unlikely to be restored.
Disorders of the vestibular apparatus
Due to a stroke, the cerebellum, the pyramid of the brain, and its trunk are affected. This leads to disorders of the vestibular apparatus. The person is sick and cannot keep his balance, he suffers from dizziness. If the cerebellum is damaged, then the patient develops:
vomit;
there is a decrease in muscle tone;
coordination of movements is impaired;
the patient has blood rushing to his face;
blood pressure changes;
sweating is possible;
heart contractions and breathing rates change.

Movement violations

Consequences in the form of motor disorders often occur after a shock. They manifest themselves in the form of paresis and paralysis. The statistics are inexorable. If there are cerebral circulatory disorders, then paralysis is possible in 80% of cases. After a cerebral infarction, an increase in tone is observed in some muscles. The appearance of pathological reflexes is also possible.
Mental disorders
Consequences in the form of mental disorders are possible after a cerebral infarction. Doctors mean psychopathological as well as frontal syndrome. If the middle cerebral artery is damaged, then the patient may have a psychopathological syndrome. This causes:
forgetfulness;
decreased intellectual abilities;
loss of orientation, etc.

If the anterior cerebral artery is damaged, then the patient may experience frontal syndrome. He has such unwanted effects:

partial loss of self-control;
irritability;
lethargy;
memory loss, etc.

Treatment of a complex illness
A cerebral infarction is very dangerous, so if it develops, a person must be transported to the hospital immediately. In the hospital, the actions of specialists are aimed at maximizing the preservation of neurons and protecting them from damage. Doctors also try to improve cerebral circulation. It is necessary to rid the blood vessels of the blood clots that are blocking them. Thrombolytics are used for this. Such drugs can dissolve blood clots. Thanks to them, it is possible to narrow the affected area, because blood circulation in the organ is quickly improved. Thus, neurons located close to the original affected area remain undamaged.
The drugs cannot be taken in all cases of stroke, but only in certain cases. They are indicated at an early stage of development of organ ischemia.

Anticoagulants are used to reduce the formation of new blood clots, making this important physiological fluid less often, and also stop the growth of existing blood clots. Antiplatelet agents are drugs that are used to prevent platelets from sticking together.

Carotid endarterectomy
Some neurons die during a stroke because they are in the affected area. It is necessary to activate the neurons surrounding them as much as possible and relieve them of stress. For this they use special drugs. These are neuroprotectors or cytoprotectors. To eliminate the consequences of the disease and its treatment, both medical and surgical methods are used. If on the inner wall carotid artery If there is an atherosclerotic plaque, it can be removed surgically. Carotid endarterectomy is an operation performed for these purposes. It is advisable to carry out such treatment if the cause of cerebral infarction is blockage of the carotid artery by atherosclerotic plaque.
Stroke patients themselves, as well as their relatives, should not lose heart. Recovery must be believed. Each organism is individual and it happens that miracles happen. The patient is recovering, although the doctors' forecasts were not encouraging. You need to believe in recovery, as well as in the restoration of lost functions. It is necessary to forget about death and depression and look to the future with optimism.

Video

IN modern medicine diseases that are associated with brain are not in last place. Every year these pathologies become younger and develop more intensively.

Knowing the initial symptoms of the disease, you can prevent it in a timely manner. serious consequences. It is recommended that at the first manifestations of pathology, immediately consult a specialist and don't study independent treatment.

Cerebral infarction - what is it?

Cerebral infarction or ischemic stroke– a serious and complex pathology that requires quality treatment. This disease develops due to a disturbance or reduction in cerebral circulation, which can be triggered by various factors and conditions.

At cerebral infarction A condition may occur when blood generally stops flowing to one or another part of the organ.

This condition is considered the most dangerous for the patient and if there is extensive disruption and damage to areas, this provokes violation brain functionality, which is almost impossible to return back to normal.

At ischemic stroke There is an irreversible change in the brain tissue, which occurs quite intensively. If the patient's insufficient blood flow does not change within a few minutes, then some areas of the cerebral cortex are switched off forever.

Consequently, such consequences are considered the most dangerous, irreversible and leading to certain serious consequences.

Ask your doctor about your situation

Types of heart attack

To assign quality and effective treatment it is necessary to accurately determine what type of cerebral infarction is progressing in the patient. In such a situation, a thorough diagnosis is required, which is carried out exclusively by specialists. We previously wrote about it here.

Lacunar

Lacunar infarction– one of the types of ischemic stroke. This pathology is represented by small-sized brain damage, which occurs due to disruption of local blood flow and gas exchange.

As for the causes, they are different and not fully established. Common reason this disease - blockage of blood vessels, which occurred due to deformation of their walls and emboli.

Lacunar infarction can develop at any time age group, but patients are more susceptible elderly age. In most cases, it is diagnosed in the male half of the population.

Lunar infarction

Significant risk factors for the development of pathology:

Hypertension.
Diabetes.
Chronic renal failure.
Post-infarction condition and complications.
Heart disease and pathologies in the bloodstream.
Rheumatism.
Heart arythmy.
Blood diseases.

As for the symptoms of lacunar infarction, they can manifest themselves in different ways, but in most situations short term. Everything will depend on where the lesion is located.

Hemorrhagic

Hemorrhagic stroke can have different localizations:

Medial.
Lateral.
Lobar.
Mixed.

There are only two types of this pathology - primary and secondary. As for the causes, hemorrhagic stroke in most cases occurs due to hypertension.

There are also other reasons that provoke pathology:

diabetes;
spinal cord diseases;
diseases and disorders of the heart.

Symptoms of hemorrhagic cerebral stroke:

nausea and vomiting that occurs for no reason;
numbness upper and lower extremities;
head pain that is systematic;
violation skin sensitivity;
dizziness;
weakness;
pulse broken.

Ischemic

Ischemic cerebral stroke– a serious pathology that is not very common. Ischemia of this organ occurs due to the blocking of blood flow by a thrombus or embolus. It can also be triggered by an atherosclerotic process.

This pathology can also be provoked by chronic diseases cardiac and vascular systems:

Vices heart and blood vessels.
Increased blood viscosity.
Problems with blood circulation.
Rheumatic endocarditis in the active phase.
Pacemaker.
Ischemia hearts.
Problems with pressure.
Heart failure.
Sugar diabetes and others.

Ischemic cerebral infarction has the following severe symptoms, when they occur, it is necessary to urgently seek qualified help:

dizziness which is accompanied by darkening of the eyes;
numbness upper or lower extremities;
weakness in the body or in the limbs;
Problems with speech that occurs for a short time.

Atherothrombotic

Atherothrombotic infarction brain combined arterioarterial embolism and stroke. It is considered a serious pathology that affects the main arteries of the brain.

Diagnosed according to the following criteria:

Availability atherosclerotic lesion of the main arteries of a given organ, in the place where the lesion is located.
Ischemic attacks.
Symptoms The disease gradually increases and becomes more pronounced after a day.
Concerning the size of the lesion, it can be different.

Stages

In modern medicine, there are four stages of brain infarction:

First stage of the disease. The period of exacerbation of pathology is up to three weeks. The formation of necrosis occurs within five days. Deformation of the cytoplasm and karyoplasm is also observed, and perifocal edema develops.
Second stage of the disease. Recovery period, which can last up to six months. The patient has pannecrosis of cells. Collateral blood flow develops.
The third stage of the disease. Late recovery period, which ranges from six months to a year. The development of glial scars or cystic defects in brain tissue may occur.
The fourth stage of the disease. A year later, the patient has residual phenomenon stroke.

Causes

The causes largely depend on the type of pathology and are therefore varied. Very often, cerebral infarction provokes blockage vessels cholesterol plaques. The formation of this plaque occurs in the carotid artery, which disrupts the flow of blood to the organ.

Also thrombus can also form in the heart, and then, traveling through the vessels, enters the brain. This phenomenon occurs due to inflammatory processes in organism, infectious diseases and also due to drug use.

Risk factors for developing cerebral infarction:

Elderly patient's age. Diagnosed at the age of 80 years.
Diseases hearts.
Arterial hypertension.
Sugar diabetes.
Tobacco smoking.
Reception oral contraceptives.

The patient may also develop several risk factors at once.

Symptoms

This pathology can be diagnosed by the following symptoms:

Paralysis limbs.
Involuntary movements.
Paresis facial expressions.
Violation speech function.
Pupils begin to gradually increase in size.
Painful sensations are completely absent.

If the above symptoms occur, you should consult a specialist and undergo a thorough examination, which will help diagnose correct diagnosis and prescribe effective treatment.

Diagnostics

First of all, after the patient is admitted with pronounced symptoms, he is referred to computed tomography , which makes it possible to distinguish an outpouring of blood from a heart attack.

On early stages pathologists can simultaneously prescribe magnetic resonance imaging, which is not used for emergency diagnosis. MRI allows you to carefully examine the images cerebral vessels. Considered non-invasive, but quite safe method research.

If it is not possible to perform a CT or MRI, then liquor research– a lumbar puncture is performed.

To study the carotid arteries, ultrasound diagnostics are performed - duplex scanning and dopplerography. Duplex scanning is considered more informative method diagnostics, as it visualizes the carotid arteries and combines Doppler examination of blood circulation in them.

Before surgical intervention be carried out cerebral angiography , which is carried out only as prescribed by a specialist.

Treatment

It is recommended to treat this pathology immediately after its first manifestations, without wasting a single minute. Timely help helps reduce the risk of consequences and prevent the subsequent development of cerebral infarction.

If the patient is diagnosed with the development of the condition, then prescribed drugs, which reduce blood clotting. When introducing such medicines in the first hours after an attack helps to avoid paralysis and other serious health consequences.

It is also necessary to consider contraindications These drugs are not recommended for use when bleeding into the brain. In the first days after the attack, the patient takes medications that reduce swelling of the organ.

If the pathology is caused by blockage of the carotid artery, then it is necessary to carry out surgical intervention. The operation helps eliminate the defect, thereby reducing the threat of a recurrent attack. Surgery may also be required to increase perfusion pressure, reduce intracranial pressure, and maintain cerebral blood flow.

Attention is also paid and rehabilitation blood pressure, pulse and respiration.

If necessary, then the patient is helped to restore speech, motor activity and return muscle tone. To do this, other highly specialized specialists should work with him in parallel, and daily therapeutic exercises must be carried out.

Also given Special attention And psychological state patient. A psychotherapist must conduct conversations with the patient. During the recovery period, nutrition should be correct and balanced, you must avoid junk food.

If there are problems with overweight , then a consultation with a nutritionist is carried out.

Attention is also paid and treatment of triggers, this pathology, diseases.

Prevention of heart attack is as follows:

Treatment arterial hypertension and heart failure.
Refusal from smoking and drinking alcohol, oral contraceptives.
Treatment diabetes mellitus.
Control cholesterol in the blood.

Consequences

If the patient is not diagnosed with damage to vital centers, the patient is conscious, his needs are controlled, then successful treatment is carried out in a hospital, then restorative measures are carried out.

Patients with lacunar ischemic stroke can expect a full recovery; other patients need to work hard to return to normal life.

As for the consequences of a cerebral infarction, they remain until the end of life:

Problems with the musculoskeletal system.
Problems with limbs.
A loss sensitivity of certain areas of the body.
Violation speech and intellectual functions.

Cause of death: stroke

If cerebral infarction proceeded with complications, this may provoke Negative consequences– stroke and as a consequence death. In such a situation, it is rarely possible to provide timely assistance to the patient.

Cerebral infarction – serious illness, which can provoke irreversible consequences if immediate attention is not provided health care. The first symptoms of the disease should not be ignored. To assign effective treatment, it is recommended to correctly diagnose and establish the type of pathology.

Cerebral infarction is a violation of its blood circulation due to the cessation of blood flow.

Synonyms:

ischemic stroke,

cerebral vascular stroke,

cerebrovascular insufficiency,

apoplexy.

Cerebral infarction is one of the most difficult, both in terms of treatment and later life person, disease. Damage to areas of the brain can lead to irreversible consequences. The provocateurs of such a heart attack are many factors, and the main one is vascular thrombosis.

There are several types of cerebral infarction. This can be either a heart attack in the anterior part of the cerebral arteries, or in the posterior or middle parts. Rarely, the vessels of the vertebrobasilar region may be involved in this process. The rarity of this heart attack lies in the fact that the lumen of the vessels is very small, and therefore the localization of the focus occurs there very rarely.

Causes of cerebral infarction

Generalized changes in cerebral vessels or extracranial vessels supplying blood to the brain due to atherosclerosis in arterial hypertension (most important factor risk in 70% of patients, 12-fold risk), smoking, diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia, obesity, hyperuricemia, hormonal contraception(especially in combination with smoking), alcohol abuse.

Thromboembolism, especially in cardiac diseases such as absolute arrhythmia, dilated cardiomyopathy, myocardial infarction, mitral valve disease with thrombi in the atrium, atrial myxomas or arterio-arterial emboli (for example, from plaques in the area of the branching of the carotid artery), carotid artery stenosis.

Aneurysma dissecans (eg, spontaneously in fibromuscular dystrophy, traumatically after TBI, acceleration trauma, manual therapy)

Angiitis, Panarteritis nodosa, polycythemia, systemic lupus erythematosus, Snedon syndrome (subintimal hyperplasia of the arteries, decreased lumen and generalized Livedo racemosa), cerebral arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukencephalopathy (inherited autosomal dominantly, defect on chromosome 19)

Causes of cerebral infarction in children: vascular defects, heart defects, coagulation disorders.

Symptoms of cerebral infarction

Characterized by an increase neurological symptoms. This can last for several hours or for several days or more. It happens that the symptoms first intensify, then weaken, and so on.

The acute state of the disease is not expressed by pain, since these receptors are not in the brain.

absence pain, is explained by the absence of pain receptors in the brain;
paralysis, such as the inability to make certain movements;
the appearance of involuntary movements due to the segmental apparatus of the spinal cord;
paresis of facial expressions, especially with a heart attack that occurred in the middle basin;
loss of speech, a consequence of damage to Broca's speech center. Women experience this symptom much less frequently than men, this is explained by the fact that women have two active speech centers in each hemisphere;
on the side affected by the infarction, there is an increase in pupils, while on the other side everything remains as before.

Treatment of cerebral infarction

If a person has suffered a cerebral infarction, the consequences of which can be the most unpredictable, his treatment may take a long time.

Drug treatment. Conducted by several different groups drugs that provide pathogenetic and symptomatic therapy.

The first group of medications includes drugs such as thrombolytics and antiplatelet agents. For symptomatic therapy drugs are used that can stop convulsive syndrome and violations autonomic system. The introduction of neotropic drugs leads to an improvement in brain activity, but not to the restoration of affected cells.

Thrombolytic therapy. A drug that dissolves the blood clot is injected into the vessel. There are also contraindications, for example, cerebral hemorrhages and ulcerative bleeding.

Surgery. Carotid endarterectomy is a very common operation that removes inner wall carotid artery, which is affected by atherosclerotic plaque. Another operation is carotid stenting. It is usually done when there is a high risk of complications after carotid endarterectomy.

Consequences of cerebral infarction

Treatment for a heart attack is very difficult and lengthy; relatives of the person who suffered the disease, as well as the patient himself, will have to be patient and spend more than one week in the hospital. But, sad as it is, a cerebral infarction, the consequences of which can be very severe, can radically change a person’s life, even if you seek medical help in time.

Very great importance have measures aimed at the rehabilitation of the patient. Despite serious condition patient, special attention must be paid proper operation his body - intestines, bladder, control the rhythm of heart contractions.

Rehabilitation measures are aimed at stabilizing blood pressure, pulse, and respiration. This course includes restoration of speech skills, resumption of motor activity, and restoration of muscle tone.

During this difficult period, it is especially important to support normal level mental condition person. Psychotherapists and family members of the patient must prevent him from falling into a depressed state.

50% of patients become disabled after a stroke, half of them have severe degree disabled and in need of care. For extracranial stenoses without surgery: 35% of patients in stage 2 have cerebral infarctions within 5 years, with surgery only 5-7% of cerebral infarctions within 5 years.

Prevention

Primary prevention of cerebral infarction: exclusion of risk factors, especially arterial hypertension. Moderate consumption of alcohol 10-20 g/day (regardless of the drink) has a protective effect on the vascular wall.

Secondary prevention (after a heart attack): consequential therapy, optimal therapy for hypertension, diabetes, weight reduction if necessary, smoking cessation, exercise.

Cerebral infarction- This clinical syndrome, which is expressed in acute disruption of local brain functions. It lasts more than 24 hours, or leads to the death of a person during this time. Acute disorder blood circulation during a cerebral infarction occurs due to blockage of its arteries, which provokes the death of neurons in the area that is fed by these arteries.

Cerebral infarction is also called. This problem is very relevant in modern world, since a huge number of people die every year due to cerebral infarction. The mortality rate for ischemic stroke is 25%, another 20% of patients die within a year, and 25% of the surviving people remain disabled.

Symptoms of a cerebral infarction depend on where the lesion is located.

However, it is possible to highlight general symptoms this pathological process, including:

Loss of consciousness, sometimes coma may develop;

Functional disorders pelvic organs;

Pain in eyeballs;

Feeling hot;

Dry mouth;

Nausea and vomiting accompanied by severe headache;

Vascular diseases (pathologies of their development, Takayasu's disease, leukemia, malignant tumors).

In addition, do not forget about risk factors that increase the likelihood of a cerebral infarction, including:

Age (every ten years of life increases the risk of developing cerebral infarction by 5-8 times);

Hereditary predisposition;

Physical inactivity;

Excess weight;

Smoking (if this bad habit is supplemented by taking oral contraceptives, then smoking becomes a leading risk factor for the development of cerebral infarction);

Alcohol abuse;

Acute stress or prolonged psycho-emotional stress.

The consequences of a cerebral infarction can be very serious and often pose a direct threat to human life, among them are:

Bedsores due to the patient lying motionless in bed for a long time.

In addition to the listed consequences of cerebral infarction, which develop in early dates, long-term complications can also be identified, including:

Impaired motor function of the limbs;

Decreased sensation in the arms, legs and face;

Speech problems;

Deterioration of mental abilities;

Mental disorders;

Difficulty swallowing food;

Coordination problems when walking and turning;

Epileptic seizures(up to 10% of people who have had a cerebral infarction are susceptible to them);

Malfunctions of the pelvic organs (suffer bladder, kidneys, intestines, reproductive organs).

What is the difference between a cerebral infarction and a stroke?

When a cerebral infarction occurs, the blood supply to the brain is disrupted, as a result of which the tissues of the affected area begin to die. Insufficient blood flow to the brain occurs due to atherosclerotic plaques that prevent its normal flow, due to heart rhythm disturbances, or due to problems with the blood coagulation system.

With a hemorrhagic stroke of the brain, on the contrary, the blood flow to it increases, which causes an artery rupture. The reason is vascular pathologies or hypertensive crisis.

There are differences in the course of the disease. Thus, cerebral infarction develops gradually, over several hours or even days, and hemorrhagic stroke occurs almost instantly.

Treatment of cerebral infarction is primarily based on thrombolytic therapy. It is important that the patient is admitted to the neurological department within the first three hours from the onset of the attack. The patient must be transported in an elevated position. The head should be 30 degrees higher than the body. If a thrombolytic is administered to the patient at the specified time, the drug will begin to very quickly dissolve the existing blood clot, which most often causes a violation of the blood supply to the brain. The effect can often be seen almost instantly, in the first seconds of drug administration.

If thrombolytic therapy is not carried out in the first three hours from the onset of cerebral infarction, then it no longer makes sense to continue it. Changes will occur in the brain, the nature of which is irreversible.

It is worth considering that thrombolysis is performed only when the doctor is sure that the patient has a cerebral infarction and not a hemorrhagic stroke. In the latter case, such therapy will lead to death.

If it is not possible to administer a thrombolytic, then the following measures are indicated:

Reduced blood pressure levels;

Taking antiplatelet agents (Aspirin) or anticoagulants (Clexane, Fraxiparin, Heparin);

Prescription of medications aimed at improving cerebral blood supply (Trental, Piracetam, Cavinton).

Patients are also prescribed B vitamins, rehabilitation treatment, are engaged in the prevention of bedsores. Self-medication is unacceptable; at the first signs of a cerebral infarction, you must call an ambulance. It is worth remembering that at home it is impossible to distinguish a cerebral infarction from a hemorrhagic stroke.

Surgical method treatment of cerebral infarction is surgical decompression aimed at reducing intracranial pressure. This method can reduce the mortality rate in cerebral infarction from 80 to 30%.

An important component general scheme Treatment of cerebral infarction is competent rehabilitation therapy, which is called “neurorehabilitation”.

You need to start it from the first days of illness:

Movement disorders are corrected using physical therapy, massage and physiotherapy methods. On this moment there are special simulators that help people recover after a cerebral infarction;

Speech disorders are corrected during individual lessons with a speech therapist;

Swallowing dysfunctions are leveled out by special devices that stimulate the laryngeal and pharyngeal muscles;

Stabilization platform exercises help to cope with coordination problems;

No less important psychological help sick. A psychotherapist helps to cope with emotional problems;

Education: Moscow State Medical and Dental University (1996). In 2003 he received an educational and scientific diploma medical center Administration of the President of the Russian Federation.