Every year, 6 million people worldwide suffer a stroke, and often it is a consequence of cerebrovascular disease (CSD). The latter – one of the main medical problems in developed countries, affects not only the elderly – every year she gets younger.
The diagnosis of ” Cerebrovascular disease ” – what is it?
Cerebrovascular disease is a lesion of the cerebral vessels, in which the vessels narrow, resulting in oxygen starvation of the brain and impairment of its functions.
Cerebrovascular disease is not a specific disease, but a collective concept uniting various lesions of cerebral vessels causing cerebral circulation.
The most serious consequences of such disorders are ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, vascular stenosis, aneurysm, hypertensive encephalopathy, cerebral arteritis, thrombosis, and vascular occlusion.
Cerebrovascular disease is a common disease. In the US, about 9 million people with diabetes suffer from disorders of cerebral circulation, and every year for 400 thousand of them this ends with a stroke.
Causes of disease
The most common cause of cerebrovascular disease is atherosclerotic vascular disease and diabetes . Much less often Cerebrovascular disease is caused by inflammatory diseases of the brain vessels, however, this is not uncommon . What can lead to problems with cerebral vessels? Risk factors are smoking and alcohol abuse, hypertension, atherosclerosis, unhealthy diet and overweight, diabetes mellitus, some metabolic disorders, chronic stress, a number of infectious diseases, tumors, injuries, heart disease, congenital vascular structure pathology, antiphospholipid syndrome, thrombosis and diseases of thecirculatory system. As it can be seen, one way or another, practically everyone is at risk, and with age the risk of cerebrovascular disease increases.
Consequences Cerebrovascular disease The brain is the “control center” of our body, it is extremely complex and even scientists do not fully understand all the subtleties of its work. But one thing is for sure – it needs oxygen for normal work. If any, even the smallest of his plot, will be left without power, the consequences will be devastating. Cerebrovascular disease periodically provokes the occurrence of brain crises caused by insufficient oxygen to the brain. The symptoms of such crises are sudden weakness, numbness of the limbs on the one hand, impaired speech and vision, confusion. These conditions are temporary and pass quickly, but without proper treatment, sooner or later the case ends with a stroke. The latter can turn a person into an invalid, and if the patient’s health even before the stroke left much to be desired, even a fatal outcome is not excluded.
How to identify cerebrovascular disease?
Cerebrovascular disease almost always develops gradually, but few people pay attention to the first “alarm bells”. Many even take them almost as a norm – modern citizens work a lot, get nervous and tired, so symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, insomnia and decreased performance do not even seem abnormal to them. Meanwhile, it is these phenomena that are the first signs that the brain lacks oxygen. If time does not take action, the state will worsen. As the cerebrovascular disease develops, the ability to concentrate gradually decreases, memory problems begin, severe headaches, dizziness, sudden tinnitus, loss of orientation occur. Often there is a decrease in intelligence and speed of reactions, depression and other nervous disorders develop. All who are at risk should undergo a neurological examination regularly. If cerebrovascular disease is suspected, the doctor will prescribe additional studies and tests – electrocardiography, electroencephalography, rheoencephalography , angiography, blood test, if necessary – MRI
Treatment of Cerebrovascular Disease
If the doctor confirms the development of cerebrovascular disease, the patient will have to change lifestyles – start a diet, stop smoking and drink alcohol, lose weight and try to avoid nerve overstrain. The basis of the treatment of cerebrovascular disease is medication. The doctor prescribes vasodilators and drugs that improve cognitive function. In the most difficult cases, surgical intervention is indicated -endarterectomy (removal of a blood clot from the artery), angioplasty (insertion of a catheter with a balloon into the lumen of the artery, followed by inflation of the balloon to increase the lumen of the vessel) and stenting of the carotid artery (additionally, a stent is installed that supports the lumen of the vessel open). If the disease was started and ended with a stroke, treatment will be more difficult. In this case, a lot depends on which part of the brain has suffered. Paralysis, impaired memory, vision, hearing and speech, reduced intelligence – these are the common consequences of a stroke. Treatment will be aimed at restoring lost functions and rehabilitation, which uses methods of physiotherapy, mechanotherapy, exercise therapy and massage, medicines, diet therapy and often work with a psychologist. Rehabilitation should be carried out in specialized centers of rehabilitation therapy. The course should be started as soon as possible – then there is a chance that the opportunities lost due to the stroke will be restored almost completely.
The duration of treatment depends on the severity of the injury, but in any case, you should take a few 2-3 week courses. Prevention of cerebrovascular disease, or What to do to prevent complications Very often, the development of cerebrovascular disease is the result of a poor lifestyle.
The main enemies are bad habits, especially smoking and alcohol abuse. In smokers, stroke occurs 2–3 times more often than in non-smokers, and after 55 years, it is smoking that most often causes serious problems with blood vessels.
People who suffer from high blood pressure are especially at risk – in hypertensive smokers, stroke occurs 5 times more often than normal pressure smokers, and 20 times more often than those who are not exposed to this harmful habit. Alcohol is no less harmful – those who like to drink, risk 4 times more sober, and this statistics is not for chronic alcoholics, but for those who only drink from time to time.Overweight, unbalanced diet with an abundance of fat and fried also have a very bad effect on the state of the vessels. Sometimes in the early stages of the disease, it is enough to change the diet and lose a few pounds to prevent the development of the disease. Light exercises are also recommended – swimming, walking, daily exercise. In the presence of diseases that can provoke cerebrovascular disease and stroke, their drug treatment is necessary.