In medical practice, the term "fainting" is no longer used. It is described in the international association: ICD-10 code - R55. Syncope is the official name. Adults and children may experience short syncope that occurs spontaneously. They are especially dangerous for people who are already in old age. The fact is that this can lead to various injuries and fractures.
What is this?
Syncope is a syndrome characterized by a short-term loss of consciousness. This happens due to a decrease in resistance in muscle tone. After a person comes to his senses, his consciousness is very quickly restored. Thus, a syncopal state (we have already named the ICD-10 code earlier) is a syncope that lasts no more than 60 seconds.
When a person comes to his senses,He has no neurological disorders. After an attack, there may be pain in the head, a desire to go to bed, as well as weakness of the body. Most often, syncope occurs in children and women, especially those who are in their teens. However, it can also be observed in he althy men. In older people, it manifests itself in the fact that several minutes that were before the syndrome fall out of their memory.
When a person faints, his muscles are relaxed, his pulse is very slow, and his breathing movements are minimal. The patient does not respond to stimuli, the skin begins to turn pale. It even happens when the process of urination occurs during an attack.
Reasons
Next, consider the causes of syncope. What it is, we already know. But why does it occur?
The human brain must be constantly intensively supplied with blood. In order to perform its functions well, it needs about 13% of the total blood flow. If a person physically loads the body, is starving or is in a stressful situation, then these numbers change greatly. Considering that the average brain weighs about 1500 g, about 750 ml of blood is needed per minute. If this indicator is less, the person will begin to faint.
The causes of this syndrome should be called ischemic attacks, a small amount of glucose, vegetative-vascular dystonia, trauma of the craniocerebral plan, epilepsy, hysteria or mental disorders, neurology, problems with heart rhythm, dehydration,vagus nerve activity, poisoning and so on. The list could go on and on, but these are the most common reasons.
Classification
Classification of the syncopal state (the ICD-10 code is known to us) implies a division according to some criteria. The syndrome is divided into 5 types.
- Cerebrovascular syncope. It can occur if the brain is underperfused. Most often, it is associated with the fact that the body has cerebrovascular pathologies. As a rule, patients have a noise over the carotid artery, as well as the absence of a brachial pulse.
- Cardiac arrhythmia. If a person has asystole, bradycardia, or tachycardia, then the patient has problems with blood output. As a rule, its indicators decrease. The causes that cause syncope in this case are hereditary pathologies, such as a reduction in atrioventricular conduction.
- Reflex look. In this case, the factor that causes this condition will be bradycardia. It occurs due to hypoperfusion or hypotension. At the same time, the person loses consciousness due to an unpleasant sound, pain, cough, tight collar, excessively sharp turn of the neck, as well as emotions.
- Orthostatic collapse. This condition is caused in a person if he is in crowded places, in a hot environment, or if he is too loaded. The nervous system does not respond well to a sudden change in posture. Therefore, there is a malfunction in the work of the heart, and a person has syncopecondition (ICD-10 code: R55). It can also be caused by Parkinson's disease, taking certain medications, and so on.
- Heart disease of the structural type. This should include myxomas of the heart, problems with the aorta and others. If a person has an increase in the amount of cardiac output, then most likely he will have a syncope (ICD-10 code: R55).
Diagnosis
In order to diagnose the syndrome, it is necessary to pay attention to the breathing process. The person will have dilated pupils, low blood pressure, a weak pulse, and an irregular heartbeat. Therefore, the patient should immediately be examined by a cardiologist and a neurologist. It is also necessary to pay attention to the clinical manifestations, since if a person has only one case of fainting, then diagnosis will be difficult. If there are frequent falls, as well as problems with orientation in space, then it is necessary to begin urgent treatment of the disease.
The doctor will definitely be interested in how a person gets out of this state. The process of restoration of vital functions is assessed, that is, the return to consciousness and the normalization of the cardiac cycle. The patient needs to do an ECG, an x-ray of the heart, as well as the respiratory tract. You should take a blood and urine test. If it is difficult to identify the cause, then an X-ray of the skull, electroencephalography, phonocardiography, as well as an examination by an ophthalmologist are prescribed.
What should the patient do?
Ifa person has fainting syncope and collapse (in the ICD-10 it has the code R55), it is necessary to immediately provide emergency care. In order for the patient not to get injured, he should pay attention to the symptoms of this condition.
If the patient begins to feel a squeak in the ears, the appearance of flies, dizziness, sweating, weakness in the body, then he must immediately unfasten tight clothing. It is necessary to use ammonia, as well as lie on a flat surface. Legs should be raised 50 degrees. If the person has not yet lost consciousness, then it is necessary to massage the temple area and upper lip.
First Aid
When the patient is in a syncopal state (we now know the ICD-10 code for this pathology), people around him should definitely open windows or doors for fresh air to enter. To bring to life, you need to use various receptor stimuli, that is, you can rub your ears, spray your face with ice water, or simply pat your cheeks. The head should be turned to the side so that the tongue does not interfere with breathing. Be sure to undo the buttons of your clothing if it is tight.
