People quite often do not pay attention to a headache. In a sense, this is facilitated by modern medicines that allow you to drown out the discomfort.
But everyone should understand that her appearance is a signal from the body, saying that something is not right with you. Quite often in such patients, the main cause of discomfort is increased intracranial pressure. Symptoms in adults, treatment methods - read about all this in our review.
What is intracranial pressure
Liquor is a cerebrospinal fluid, the excess of which can put pressure on the human brain. It is formed in clusters of small vessels, which are called the "sacs" of the human brain.
And it was the pressure of this liquid that becamecalled intracranial. If there is little cerebrospinal fluid, then the pressure will inevitably decrease, but if there is too much of it, then this is exactly the case when doctors diagnose increased intracranial pressure. Symptoms in adults are extremely unpleasant. Yes, and this disease is dangerous.
A he althy person has a stable level of fluid in the body, without obvious predominance in one direction or another.
Increased intracranial pressure: symptoms in adults
In addition to the actual high blood pressure, this problem has a number of accompanying symptoms. How does increased intracranial pressure manifest itself? Symptoms in adults are:
- headache is noticeably worse in the evening and at night;
- constant feeling of nausea, but no vomiting;
- a person feels weak and lethargic, he becomes irritable much faster;
- the pupil of the eye does not react to light, and the patient himself has "flies" in his eyes;
- one side of the body suddenly loses muscle strength, much like paralysis.
Headache due to intracranial pressure often becomes more pronounced with sneezing and coughing. The same is to be expected from slopes.
In such cases, if the pain zone is indefinite, you can expect pain to increase not in the evening, but in the morning.
Pressure has a significant effect on the optic nerve. The consequences of this can be temporary blindness, fog before the eyes and other manifestations that prevent a person from leadinga fulfilling lifestyle.
Even mentally stable people experience discomfort during bouts of high blood pressure. They may experience nervous breakdowns, long periods of depression. The person becomes lethargic, leads a passive lifestyle and is quickly irritated.
Frequent lower back pain can also be one of the manifestations of the disease.
How to be treated
If you have increased intracranial pressure, treatment should not be shelved. You need to urgently seek help from a specialist. Methods of therapy are quite strongly dependent on the reasons for the appearance of such high pressure. Much also depends on the age of the patient who consulted a doctor.
The main treatments are drugs that affect the blood vessels, as well as sedatives and diuretics.
In addition, manual therapy and gymnastics are prescribed.
The patient is put on a specific diet, the essence of which is the use of foods rich in vitamins. Avoid drinking large amounts of fluids and s alt.
In especially severe cases, drainage and shunts are indicated - this is necessary to reduce the amount of cerebrospinal fluid.
How to reduce intracranial pressure yourself
If the disease caught you at the wrong time, you can always deal with it at home. You should not count on a complete cure, but it is quite possible to relieve most of the symptoms. So, how to reduce intracranial pressure inat home?
An important role in self-treatment is played by diuretics, such as tincture of hawthorn, rosehip, lavender, etc. They provoke a decrease in intracranial pressure.
It is worth noting that before taking herbal tinctures, it is imperative to consult with your doctor.
Another way to reduce intracranial pressure at home? The massage of two points on the back of the head is quite effective. To use it, you need to grab your head with your hands so that your thumbs are exactly on the back of your head. After that, you need to make circular movements for several minutes.
Pills for intracranial pressure
Of course, drug therapy is also used in the treatment of intracranial pressure. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that drug treatment must necessarily take place under the supervision of a physician. Otherwise, negative and even fatal consequences should be expected.
The usual practice in such cases is the appointment of diuretic drugs like "Furosemide" or "Veroshpiron". If the condition has negatively affected the patient's optic nerve, then he is prescribed corticosteroid tablets for intracranial pressure, such as Prednisolone or Dexamethasone.
Folk treatment
Is it possible to treat alternative intracranial pressure? Alternative medicine is quite effective, but its main disadvantage is thatthat it only relieves the symptoms. In fact, it is almost impossible to cure intracranial pressure with the help of folk remedies. They should be used in cases where it is not possible to get an appointment with your doctor.
The main weapon against all ailments is herbal infusions and decoctions. Valerian, sage and St. John's wort are mainly used.
Having selected medicinal herbs, they should be poured with boiling water. You need to make sure that the herbs were taken no more than one tablespoon. You need to drink the infusion for one month, drinking a quarter cup three times a day. After a course of herbs, you should take a break from them for a significant period of time.
There are other options. Alcohol tincture is a very popular remedy among the people. It is necessary to take dry clover flowers as a basis, fill them with exactly half of the jar, and fill to the very top with alcohol or vodka. After that, the tincture should be placed in a dark and cool place for two weeks.
When it is ready, it can be taken twice a day, one teaspoon, previously diluted with water.
And finally, tincture of garlic is good for headaches. To make it, you need to take three lemons and pass them through a meat grinder along with the skin. Three chopped heads of garlic should be added to the resulting mixture.
After that, the drug should be allowed to settle, and only then you can start taking the medicine in small doses and several times a day.
Intracranial pressure. Which doctor should I contact?
What kind of doctor treats this unpleasant and potentially dangerous disease? First you have to go to a therapist to cut off all possible options. After that, they should issue a referral to a neurologist, but he already knows perfectly well what to do with the disease.
You should not expect that the doctor will be able to cure intracranial pressure instantly. To begin with, you will need to undergo many examinations, including an MRI and an encephalogram. After making sure that you do not have other brain pathologies, the doctor can proceed with standard treatment procedures.
The need for an examination by a therapist is high, as he needs to cut off many other possible diseases. This is very important, because the sooner you can start the right treatment, the easier it will be to defeat the disease.
Drugs for increased intracranial pressure
Some drugs fight the manifestations of intracranial pressure, while the rest are aimed at the root cause of the disease.
Drugs for high intracranial pressure in adults are primarily diuretics. Their main purpose is to help the body get rid of excess fluid. The smaller it is, the faster the pressure will drop.
For example, the drug "Gricerol" effectively copes with this task.
In addition, drugs that expand the human vascular system are actively used. For example, one of the most widelycommon options are magnesium. It also has an antiarrhythmic effect.
Among some doctors, it is common practice to treat internal cranial pressure according to a certain scheme, which includes nootropics and pills that help stabilize the blood circulation process in the brain.
The most common choice of doctors is "Nootropil", "Pirocetam" and "Phenotropil". Their main goal is to normalize the patient's thought process and at the same time help him cope with intellectual stress.
"Sermion" and "Cavinton" are drugs that affect blood circulation. It is worth recalling once again that only a doctor is able to choose the right pills and determine the dosage. Self-treatment in such a delicate field of medicine can lead to consequences that no doctor can reverse.
When to See a Doctor
Measure normal pressure is not the slightest difficulty, but when it comes to intracranial pressure, here many fall into a stupor. And there is something from.
The most effective way to find out if there is a problem is a puncture. The doctor takes a needle connected to a pressure gauge and then inserts it into the spinal canal. All this requires careful preparation of the patient, which is available only in a hospital.
These are not all options. More expensive - MRI. It costs decent money, but it is no less accurate, and there is no need to insert any needles and other things that can scaresick. And yet, most often, doctors manage with electroencephalography. It can be used to detect changes in the picture of brain activity, which is also evidence of an increased level of pressure in the brain.
If you once found yourself with an unreasonable headache and nausea, do not delay, consult a doctor. It may be possible to prevent the disease before it goes into more serious phases.
Causes of disease
Intracranial pressure, the symptoms and treatment of which we examined, can be triggered by many factors, but most often this condition is observed in cases of congenital pathologies and with a variety of inflammations, such as meningitis and encephalitis.
At risk are people who are overweight. Such a useful vitamin A at the same time is a substance that can significantly increase your pressure, but this is possible only with an excess of retinol in the body.
Intoxication is another reason for the occurrence of the disease. Exposure to toxic substances adversely affects the normal functioning of the brain. Serious organic damage can result.
Intracranial pressure in children
Children, no less than adults, are at risk of getting this unpleasant disease, which in the end can have the most negative impact on their level of development and further success in life. Apathy, drowsiness, excessive sensitivity, in some cases even strabismus. All this does not contribute to the learning process, prevents the child from being active and inquisitive.
Consequences of intracranial pressure for a child
The child is at risk of depression, he inevitably lags behind in school, does not want to go out with peers, avoids meeting new people and even locks himself in his room, because he does not want to participate in any of the activities.
Increased intracranial pressure (symptoms and treatment of the disease depend on the presence of concomitant diseases) can be detected even in infants. Because of him, children learn late to hold their heads, walk and even talk. Therefore, a scheduled examination by specialists, including a neurologist, is not recommended to be skipped and ignored.
To avoid such a disaster with your child, you should carefully listen to their complaints (we are talking about older children, of course, not babies) and, if necessary, take them to the doctor in a timely manner.
Symptoms of intracranial pressure in children
In children, the disease manifests itself in its own way, but there are common symptoms. Anxiety and fatigue, severe headache, nausea and vomiting, strabismus are all things to watch out for as your baby grows.
In very small babies, the shape of the head can be deformed and the volume of the head can increase, too frequent regurgitation is observed, and this does not even depend on meals. The child as a whole behaves more restlessly than all other children. And finally, a monotonous cry is another evidence that a small organism suffers from increased intracranial pressure.
