Increased intracranial pressure in adults treatment. Intracranial pressure - symptoms and treatment

Many patients complain of minor ailments such as slight dizziness, blurred vision, or occasional headaches. Few people associate such symptoms with any existing disease. Almost everyone considers the cause of this condition to be fatigue, stress, lack of sleep or mental stress. Also, not everyone knows that the listed symptoms may indicate increased intracranial pressure. Increased blood pressure, in turn, can be a consequence of other serious health problems, in particular cerebrovascular accidents. This is especially true for children. Neurologists have long been sounding the alarm about the increasing incidence of this pathology. And today we will touch on the issue “Intracranial pressure: symptoms and treatment”

Methods for determining HPV

If we talk about the norm of intracranial pressure, then this indicator falls within the range from 100 to 151 mm Hg. Before starting to measure HRF, specialists pay attention to the patient’s age. An important factor will be the presence or absence of a stroke in the patient’s history.

How to check intracranial pressure? Methods may vary. Infants are mainly prescribed ultrasound examination and echoencephaloscopy. For older patients, computer and magnetic resonance imaging methods are used.

In case of manifestations of malfunction of the visual analyzers, special diagnostics are used aimed at identifying the general picture of the fundus. In such cases, specialists are likely to detect swelling of the optic nerve and blurred contours of the fundus.

How to measure intracranial pressure? It is impossible to do this at home. Modern medicine provides three methods:

epidural;
subdural (used in emergency situations);
using an intraventricular catheter.

Intracranial pressure: causes of pathology development

One of the reasons affecting intracranial pressure, medical workers call a change in brain size due to edema. This also includes the following:

Inflammation or the appearance of a tumor in the medulla.
Intoxication of the body resulting from poisoning: poisonous gases, low-quality alcohol, various harmful salts.
An increase in HF can be accompanied by a number of diseases, such as stroke, brain injury, hydrocephalus, hematomas of various etymologies.
In newborn children, the cause of pathology, as a rule, is various injuries they received at birth.

Increased intracranial pressure: symptoms

The symptoms accompanying increased UHF are quite numerous.
Here are the main signs of intracranial pressure in adults:

Pain in the head, usually occurring immediately after waking up, and spreading to almost the entire skull. Most often, it has a pressing nature and is not relieved by painkillers.
Nausea and vomiting may occur periodically.
There may be a disruption in the functioning of mental processes, accompanied by apathy and increased drowsiness.
Changes in blood pressure, visual disturbances, dizziness and slow pulse are observed.

Symptoms of intracranial pressure in an adult may also include the development of unexpected panic attacks, accompanied by sharp pain in the abdomen or heart. Some patients experience digestive and intestinal disorders due to this background. Experts call visual impairment a common manifestation of the pathology. Sometimes until it is completely lost if the patient is not provided with timely assistance.

Signs of intracranial pressure in babies under one year old may be as follows:

The child experiences swelling of the fontanelles and their excessive pulsation. The baby's behavior changes noticeably: the child may be either overly sleepy or overexcited. In this case, the child experiences obvious disturbances in daytime and night sleep.
The baby often vomits, the number of regurgitations increases, and convulsive syndrome is observed.
The child's muscle tone decreases sharply, which can cause poor mobility.
The baby may experience problems with vision, up to the sudden appearance of strabismus and limited mobility of the eyeball.

If the cause of the increase in VHF is an excessive amount of cerebrospinal fluid in the cranial cavity, then the baby begins to rapidly grow in head volume. The child develops hydrocephalus. With severe development of the disease, the baby may periodically lose consciousness.

Benign intracranial hypertension

The course of the disease has not been sufficiently studied to date. The cause of the development of the pathology has also not been established, despite numerous studies.

Most often, this condition is diagnosed in overweight women and children. The symptoms are practically indistinguishable from high HHF and, as a rule, disappear on their own after some time.

In rare cases, complications may occur. The most common is a sharp increase in pressure inside the skull, leading, in the worst case scenario, to death if timely assistance is not provided.

Easier ones include:

respiratory dysfunction;
disorder of consciousness;
convulsive syndrome;
blurred vision, sometimes to the point of complete loss;
disorder of mental processes;
strokes.

How to treat intracranial pressure?

Before beginning to determine adequate forms of treatment for the disease, neurologists establish the cause of the pathology. If the cause of the disease is various tumors or neoplasms, the patient is prescribed emergency surgery.

If there is an excess amount of fluid in the brain, shunting is prescribed to remove excess cerebrospinal fluid from the patient’s skull.

Drug correction is used if surgical intervention is not required. First of all, patients are prescribed drugs that have a sedative effect on the nervous system. Quite often diuretics are prescribed, since in this case excess cerebrospinal fluid is eliminated naturally.

Almost all patients are prescribed hormonal drugs. The combined use of such drugs will help to adjust, first of all, the amount of water in the body, and also regulate hormonal metabolism.

Compliance with a specialized diet plays an important role in the treatment of elevated UHF. The nutritional system provides for limiting salt in food, as well as the amount of fluid entering the body.

The use of manual therapy methods has recently become a popular and effective treatment option. There are practically no contraindications for the method, as well as side effects. In rare cases, the patient may experience a sharp decrease in blood pressure. Symptoms include increased drowsiness, apathy, headaches, accompanied by vestibular manifestations (dizziness).

Intracranial pressure can normally range from 7.5 to 15 mm Hg. Art. In children, normal values are slightly lower than in adults. An increase in values above normal (), as a rule, is secondary in nature and is a pathological condition that can occur in adults and children and lead to the development of adverse consequences. For values greater than 30 mmHg. Art. Possible irreversible damage to brain tissue, including death.

What is intracranial pressure?

The pressure inside the skull is caused primarily by the pressure of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) contained in some structures of the brain, partly by the pressure of the blood in the vessels, and in some cases by tissue fluid.

Why is its increase dangerous? The fact is that the brain is located in the cranium, that is, it is strictly limited by bone structures. An increase in pressure in such a confined space leads to compression of brain structures, which causes neurological disorders, primarily headaches. Long-term intracranial hypertension can cause severe complications.

A prolonged increase in pressure inside the skull, as a rule, is a clinical sign of a particular disease, and is not an independent pathology.

Pressure inside the skull, unlike arterial pressure, cannot be treated independently at home; special instrumental methods are used for this. How can you tell if a person has high cranial pressure? Typically, its presence is indicated by a characteristic triad of signs:

Headache.
Vomit.
Congestive fundus (determined by an ophthalmologist).

What causes increased intracranial pressure?

Typically, intracranial hypertension occurs with an increase in the volume of cerebrospinal fluid, tissue fluid (cerebral edema), blood (venous stagnation), as well as with the formation of neoplasms in the brain (cyst, tumor).

A short-term increase in cranial pressure occurs in healthy people when coughing, sneezing, bending the body, stressful situations, excessive physical exertion, etc. However, in such cases it quickly returns to normal.

A prolonged increase in pressure inside the skull, as a rule, is a clinical sign of a particular disease, and is not an independent pathology, i.e., it is secondary in nature. The cause of a persistent increase in intracranial pressure is traumatic brain injury, inflammation of the brain and its membranes (meningitis, encephalitis), neoplasms in the head, stroke, hydrocephalus. Less commonly, intoxication with salts of heavy metals, poisonous gases, methyl or ethyl alcohol.

Long-term intracranial hypertension can cause severe complications.

Diagnostics

To make a diagnosis, data obtained from collecting complaints and anamnesis and examining the patient, in particular ophthalmological, are used. Examination of the fundus makes it possible to detect characteristic small hemorrhages on the retina, enlargement of the blood vessels of the eyeball, and swelling of the optic nerve head. The detection of such signs in the presence of a characteristic clinical picture allows us to establish increased cranial pressure.

To detect the primary disease, an examination is carried out, including laboratory and instrumental methods (computer or magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalography, etc.).

The choice of one or another method for measuring pressure inside the skull depends on the age of the patient and the characteristics of the course of the disease. In children of the first year of life, neurosonography and echoencephalography are usually used. A puncture of the ventricles of the brain (or lumbar spine) with pressure measurement may be necessary. The puncture performs another role - it allows for laboratory diagnosis of cerebrospinal fluid if the pathology is suspected of being infectious or tumorous. When measuring, cyclical changes in the indicator should also be taken into account, which allows one to obtain more information than when determining a separate average value.

During the diagnosis, edema, an increase or decrease in the volume of the ventricles of the brain, hemorrhages, neoplasms, an increase in the space between the meninges, divergence of the sutures of the skull, displacement of brain structures and other changes in the structure of the brain and surrounding tissues can be detected.

Vomiting in this case is not associated with food intake. It also often appears in the morning and can be repeated. After it, the intensity of the headache decreases.

Differential diagnosis is carried out with epilepsy, migraine, metabolic diseases, psychosomatic disorders (psychosomatics in medicine is the development of somatic, i.e., bodily diseases under the influence of psychological factors).

How to treat intracranial hypertension

What to do if you have increased cranial pressure? How to get rid of it? Treatment proceeds in two main directions:

in order to eliminate compression of brain structures and painful symptoms of pathology.
Elimination of the cause of intracranial hypertension, i.e. treatment of the underlying disease.

Depending on the results of the examination, both conservative and surgical methods can be used.

The primary goal of conservative, and in complex cases, surgical treatment is to reduce cerebrospinal fluid pressure.

Examination of the fundus makes it possible to detect characteristic small hemorrhages on the retina, enlargement of the blood vessels of the eyeball, and swelling of the optic nerve head.

Surgical treatment is resorted to when drug therapy is ineffective or for health reasons. It consists of shunting, creating an artificial path for the outflow of cerebrospinal fluid. Excess cerebrospinal fluid will be pumped through a special tube inserted from the ventricles of the brain into the abdominal cavity or into the space between the meninges at the base of the brain. If the shunt is placed in a child, it may need to be lengthened several times as the child grows.

In addition, surgical treatment is carried out in the treatment of certain neoplasms - aneurysms, hematomas, cysts, tumors.

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Frequent headaches, dizziness, and loss of consciousness are symptoms of serious problems. In some cases, they occur due to increased intracranial pressure. If all these problems are bothering you at the same time, you need to urgently go to the hospital for advice and treatment.

How to check intracranial pressure

Intracranial pressure occurs when cerebrospinal fluid, or cerebrospinal fluid, presses against the brain. The main part of the substance is formed as a result of the work of the choroid plexuses of glandular cells. If the amount of cerebrospinal fluid formed exceeds 1 liter per day, increased pressure appears inside the skull. In addition, structures such as blood in the vessels and an enlarged brain cause cerebral hypertension. Doctors believe that the reasons why this condition occurs may be:

traumatic brain injuries;
hydrocephalus;
brain tumors;
hypertension;
stroke;
meningitis.

However, to confirm or refute the presence of these diseases, it is necessary to measure intracranial pressure using one of the existing diagnostic methods. The first thing a person who feels a similar malaise should do is go to the clinic. Before an accurate diagnosis can be made, you will have to undergo a full examination.

Which doctor measures intracranial pressure

Before contacting a specialist for advice, you need to find out who measures intracranial pressure. This area is dealt with by a neurologist and an ophthalmologist. The first doctor conducts an initial examination and interview, assesses the symptoms that are troubling the patient. After this, he decides whether a visit to other doctors and additional examination using equipment is required. The ophthalmologist has the ability to examine the fundus of the eye, take measurements and diagnose whether ICP is elevated or not.

Methods for measuring intracranial pressure

The degree of increase in pressure inside the skull can only be measured by a doctor in a hospital or a specially equipped medical center where there is the necessary equipment. All methods by which intracranial pressure is diagnosed are divided into invasive (based on penetration into the organ) and non-invasive (superficial examination).

Invasive diagnostic methods

Nowadays, the invasive method is used only when it is impossible to do otherwise. These methods pose a danger to the patient's life and are used only in adults. There are several types of invasive examination:

Epidural. Hair is removed from the head, the skin at the trepanation site is numbed, and a small incision is made. A hole is drilled in the skull through which a special sensor is inserted between the skull and the membrane of the brain. The device should reach the side of the ventricle.
Subdural. A subdural screw is inserted through a hole in the skull, which measures the patient’s ICP level.
Use of an intraventricular catheter. It is considered the most effective of the proposed invasive methods. The catheter is inserted through a burr hole in the skull. It helps not only to assess data on the level of increase in intracranial pressure, but also to pump out intracerebral fluid with a drainage tube.

Non-invasive diagnostics

An indirect or non-invasive diagnostic method allows you to examine the brain and measure the pressure of the fluid inside it. Unlike direct invasive methods, they are safe and painless. These techniques are suitable for patients with a satisfactory condition because their accuracy is questionable. The methods by which non-invasive diagnostics are carried out include:

Magnetic resonance imaging. The person is placed inside the capsule during the study, which takes 30-40 minutes. At the moment, doctors regard MRI as an auxiliary diagnostic method because it does not provide accurate results.
Transcranial Dopplerography. It is based on measuring the speed of blood flow inside the basal veins and venous sinus. The level of blood resistance in the jugular veins is also taken into account. The examination is carried out on an outpatient basis.
Duplex scanning of arteries. The doctor can use this test to diagnose the condition of the blood flow and blood vessels. Takes about 10 minutes.
Fundus examination. Before measuring intracranial pressure, the ophthalmologist instills a few drops of 1% homatropine solution into each eye of the patient to dilate the pupils. The examination is carried out using a special mirror at a distance of 8 cm or an electric ophthalmoscope. If ICP is elevated, the ophthalmologist will notice dilation of the tortuous vessels, changes in the tissue, contours and color of the optic nerve head.
Otoacoustic method. The doctor evaluates the position of the eardrum in the ear. If the pressure in the skull is higher than normal, then it also increases in the cochlea.
Spinal tap. A needle is inserted into the spine between the 3rd and 4th vertebrae. A pressure gauge is attached to it to measure the volume of liquid and the degree of pressure. The patient must remain in the hospital during this method.
Rheoencephalography. The method consists of passing a high-frequency discharge of weak current through the tissues of the skull. A device with wires is fixed on the head, the person is seated on a chair and light pulses are directed at him. The device must diagnose the level of ICP, converting the readings into a graph of pulse fluctuations.

How is intracranial pressure measured in adults?

After conducting a visual examination of the patient and assessing the symptoms that bother him, the neurologist sends him for additional examination. The diagnostic method is chosen at the discretion of the specialist and depends on the degree of the patient’s condition. In most cases, intracranial pressure in adults is measured non-invasively, but in the case of severe traumatic brain injury, direct examination methods are used.

How to check intracranial pressure in a child

Intracranial hypertension can also occur in children. The diagnosis of ICP is often made in newborns based on symptoms:

frequent crying for no reason;
protruding and tense fontanelle;
head size is larger than normal;
strabismus.

Intracranial pressure in older children manifests itself as:

vomit;
headache;
fatigue;
increased excitability;
convulsions.

These signs do not always indicate cerebral hypertension, but if they bother you at the same time, then you need to immediately examine the child. The doctor will tell you how to measure intracranial pressure in childhood and using what method. For children whose fontanel has not yet become overgrown, neurosonography or ultrasound of the brain is prescribed. The procedure is completely safe and is indicated for newborns from birth. Children as young as one year old are referred for echoencephalography. The device will help track the level of pulsation of brain vessels.

There is now a lot of information on how to treat intracranial pressure at home. Intracranial pressure is caused by a lack or excess of cerebrospinal fluid due to impaired circulation.

Symptoms of intracranial pressure

High blood pressure is caused by excess fluid that puts pressure on the brain, causing severe headaches. Low blood pressure occurs when the amount of cerebrospinal fluid, or cerebrospinal fluid, decreases. Symptoms include:

constant headaches that get worse in the morning or evening;
nausea;
lethargy, drowsiness, increased irritability;
dark bags under the eyes;
loss of muscle strength;
weakness;
heavy sweating;
tinnitus;
fatigue.

Methods of treating the disease

There are many ways to treat this disease. In any case, you should not self-medicate by relieving pain with strong painkillers. It is better to consult a doctor and undergo an examination, because... Intracranial pressure can be caused by a tumor or head injury, and neglect of your health can lead to serious consequences.

Typically, to reduce intracranial pressure, a low-salt diet is prescribed and diuretics are prescribed to remove excess fluid from the body.

Sometimes they resort to surgical intervention. The need for this arises if the disease is a consequence of a stroke or severe head injury.
One of the causes of intracranial pressure may be excess weight. Therefore, doctors advise constant weight control. It is worth reconsidering your habits, namely:

smoking;
excessive alcohol consumption;
eating fatty, spicy foods;
sedentary lifestyle.

Experts advise running in the morning or evening. You can select the time and intensity of training based on your athletic training and well-being. If you devote 10 minutes to this activity every day, your condition will improve over time and headaches will bother you less often.

Folk remedies should be used if your disease is chronic or as an addition to the main treatment. Most folk recipes are based on the use of decoctions of herbs and medicinal plants. Using these tips in practice will at a minimum help increase the effectiveness of treatment and, at a maximum, get rid of the hated disease.

How to treat intracranial pressure at home

To prepare the medicine you will need the juice of one lemon and 2 tablespoons of honey. Mix ingredients and add 100 ml warm water. Mix thoroughly. You should drink the drink before bed or in the morning. The duration of treatment is 20 days. After 10 days you should take a break for a few days. This drink will help both normalize blood pressure and improve immunity.

One spoon of dry plantain is poured into a glass of boiling water and left for half an hour. Drink 2 tablespoons of decoction after meals 3 times a day.

Mulberry decoction is a good pain reliever. To prepare it you will need 20 g of mulberry sprigs, which are boiled in 1 liter of boiling water for 10 minutes. The decoction should steep for about 30 minutes, and it should be consumed 100 g before meals.

Birch sap helps to reduce intracranial pressure. You can use it without any restrictions, in any quantities. It has a diuretic effect and well complements the daily need for vitamins and minerals.

To prepare the infusion you will need 10 g of mint, 10 g of hawthorn, 10 g of valerian and 10 g of motherwort. Pour 0.5 liters of vodka over the herbs. Leave in a dark, dry place for 24 hours. The resulting product is taken one teaspoon 2 times a day.

Using a blender, grind 2 lemons and 2 heads of garlic. Pour the resulting mixture with 2 liters of warm water. The drink should be taken 2 tablespoons before bedtime.

Warmed lavender oil, which should be rubbed into the temples, will help normalize blood pressure.

3 tablespoons of dry collection, consisting of nettle and string in a 1:1 ratio, pour 1 liter of boiling water. It is recommended to take 50 g of the drink before each meal.

Compresses, inhalations and tinctures

To prepare the tincture you will need 100 g of crushed lavender herb and 100 g of olive oil. The ingredients are mixed and left for 20 days in a dark place. After this, the mixture is filtered through cheesecloth and 150 g of aloe juice is added to it. The resulting product can be taken orally, 2 teaspoons per day or instilled into the nose.

To relieve pain with increased intracranial pressure, an alcohol compress based on camphor oil will help. To prepare it you will need 50 g of 70% alcohol and 50 g of camphor oil. The mixture should be slightly heated in a water bath. Soak a cloth or gauze with the resulting solution and place it on the scalp. Wrap your head in plastic wrap and cover with a towel. Keep the compress on your head for 2-3 hours. After this, you need to wash your hair with shampoo. The procedure should be performed before bedtime 10 times with an interval of 1 day.

Inhalation to relieve headaches with increased ICP. 30 bay leaves are poured into 0.5 liters of boiling water and left for 5-10 minutes. Then we breathe over the pan for 15 minutes, covered with a towel.

An effective remedy for headaches is a decoction made from garlic and milk. 10 cloves of garlic need to be grated on a fine grater, pour in 100 ml of milk and bring to a boil. The resulting broth is cooled and filtered. The resulting mixture is instilled into each ear, 5-10 drops. After 1 minute, it is necessary for the liquid to come out of the ear. To do this, you should tilt your head.

An interesting way to relieve headaches due to ICP is to use a magnet. You need to apply it to your temples, and the pain will go away.

To reduce headaches, you can drink a glass of kefir with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. The drink must be mixed thoroughly and you should drink 1 glass every day.

Beetroot juice will help. 200 ml of juice should be mixed with 1 tablespoon of honey. It is recommended to take this remedy 4-5 times a day for 3 weeks. Please note that the juice should sit for about 3 hours before drinking, since freshly prepared beet juice can negatively affect blood vessels.

People suffering from increased intracranial pressure are especially sensitive to weather changes. Their blood pressure rises and their head starts to hurt. You can lower your blood pressure with mustard plasters. They need to be applied to the neck and back of the head.

In case of a sharp attack of pain, you can mix grated horseradish and radish in equal quantities. The resulting mixture should be spread on gauze and divided into 2 compresses. They need to be applied to the calf muscles and the legs should be wrapped in a warm blanket. After 20 minutes, the compresses can be removed. After this, you need to lubricate the skin of your feet with cream or sunflower oil.

One of the most pleasant methods of combating intracranial pressure is to eat grapes. It has a diuretic effect and nourishes brain tissue. You can take grapes as a treatment in unlimited quantities. The sweeter the grapes, the more effective the treatment will be.

You can reduce the pain with a cotton swab dipped in cold water. They need to wipe their ears and the pain will go away.

Butter can also normalize. To do this, you need to melt it and drop it into your nose about 5 times daily.

In the modern world, many people try to resort to treatment with chemicals or pills as little as possible and are increasingly using traditional methods. If your diagnosis is intracranial pressure, don’t be discouraged! This disease is treatable, the main thing is not to give up and believe in healing. Get outdoors more often. Walking will not only improve your blood circulation, but will also lift your mood.

Yoga is an excellent way to normalize intracranial pressure.

During exercise, the blood is saturated with oxygen and its circulation is normalized.

Head of the Department of Functional Diagnostics

Neurologist of the highest category, specialist in the field of extrapyramidal pathologies, doctor of the highest category

Headache, weakness, fatigue, decreased performance - these signs may also indicate a change in intracranial pressure. It should be understood that it changes depending on the physiological and psychological state of a person, so there is a wide range of normal indicators. It is impossible to measure it at home, so when the first symptoms appear, you should contact for a full diagnosis. The Clinical Institute of the Brain has all the conditions for checking intracranial pressure, and also has a staff of specialists who will prescribe effective treatment if pathology is detected. Untimely provision of medical care is dangerous to health, since in conditions of insufficient blood supply to certain areas of the brain, the level of their functioning gradually decreases.

Physiological norm and determination of intracranial pressure

The human skull is a cavity in which the brain is located. To protect it from injury, as well as to maintain its normal operation, there are sections filled with liquid. First of all, the liquid fraction is represented by blood, which is located in the vessels. There is also cerebrospinal fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) present here. It is synthesized in special choroid plexuses and enters the skull through the spinal canal, then is located in the ventricles of the brain and is removed through the venous sinuses. This fluid is necessary for the transport of oxygen and nutrients that are used by brain cells to maintain performance.

Intracranial pressure is a complex value that consists of several factors:

brain pressure (normally it occupies no more than 85% of the skull space);
blood - up to 8%;
spinal cerebrospinal fluid - up to 7%.

Blood and cerebrospinal fluid are in constant motion. If blood circulates through the vascular bed, then spinal fluid moves through the ventricles of the brain and along the spinal canal. These fractions are continuously synthesized, enter the cranium and move further along the vascular bed. When they are in the skull, they put pressure on the inside of the blood vessels and ventricles of the brain. For this reason, intracranial pressure is present in every person, and its value can change every minute. An increase or decrease in this indicator may indicate both pathology and normal physiological processes in the human body.

Causes of blood pressure abnormalities

In the CIS countries, increased intracranial pressure is a common diagnosis. It is prescribed for various disorders of the central nervous system in adults and children, and a simple set of therapeutic procedures allows you to quickly normalize the condition and maintain it in the future. However, changes in ICP levels are actually a symptom of a number of dangerous diseases that cannot be treated at home. When making a diagnosis, it is important to pay attention to the patient’s complaints, collect a complete picture and determine whether the pressure inside the skull is really pathologically reduced or increased and threatens human health. In most cases, if ICP is indeed elevated, the patient has a number of additional clinical signs that can be used to identify serious disorders of nervous activity.

Increased intracranial pressure

Increased intracranial pressure is a dangerous phenomenon. It accompanies diseases that threaten the patient’s life. These include:

inflammatory diseases of the membranes of the brain, including those of infectious origin (meningitis);
serious poisoning with toxins - in this case there is an increase in the amount of blood in the vessels of the brain and its stagnation;
traumatic injuries of brain tissue (closed craniocerebral injuries);
various neoplasms in the cranial cavity;
hematomas located between the membranes of the brain;
hydrocephalus is a dangerous disease characterized by impaired outflow of spinal fluid and its accumulation in the ventricles of the brain;
severe metabolic disorders (advanced forms of diabetes).

In children under the age of 10-11 years, any signs of intracranial hypertension are often associated with birth injuries. Indeed, this factor in history can provoke cerebral hypoxia and various neurological disorders. However, it is important to exclude the possibility of developing hydrocephalus - this disease manifests itself at an early age and is characterized by a rapid increase in the volume of the head. Since the anatomical norm may differ in children (a large head is not a cause for concern), the diagnosis is made based on frequent measurements of head circumference and analysis of the rate of its growth. Signs of increased intracranial pressure in adults are a reason to undergo an examination and exclude the possibility of neoplasms in the cranial cavity.

Reduced pressure

Reduced intracranial pressure is a less dangerous condition. This indicator decreases in certain situations that can be corrected by a set of procedures or by taking medications. No surgical intervention will be required. The reasons for its decrease include:

production of spinal fluid in insufficient quantities or acceleration of its reabsorption into the blood;
increasing the permeability of the barrier, which ensures the exchange of fluid between the cells of the central nervous system and the bloodstream;
decreased tone of blood vessels;
diseases of the spinal column, especially the cervical region affects the indicator of intracranial pressure;
any conditions that are accompanied by pathological dehydration of the body: poisoning, taking diuretics, allergic reactions and others.

In some diseases, there is a decrease in the rate of blood circulation through the vessels of the brain. They can also be a consequence of birth injuries, vascular pathologies, and congenital abnormalities of the brain structure. If not treated promptly, this condition can also cause dangerous complications.

Signs of pathology

Changes in intracranial pressure affect the general condition of the patient. This is often preceded by injuries or blows to the head, complications during childbirth, and diseases of the meninges. In this case, the patient cannot lead a normal lifestyle, and the symptoms of increased or decreased ICP are not relieved by taking medications. Such patients are treated in a hospital setting. It is also impossible not to notice pathological changes in this indicator in children. In addition, in the absence of a reason, the pressure cannot increase or decrease and stop at a critical level for the child - serious reasons are required for this.

The physiological basis for painful sensations with an increase or decrease in pressure, as well as other symptoms, is an insufficient supply of blood to the brain and various disturbances in its circulation. If fluid is retained in the vessels and cerebral ventricles, the tissues are under constant pressure, which can provoke gradual necrosis (death) of cells. Hypoxia (insufficient oxygen supply) and nutrient deficiency are also observed - this causes disturbances in brain activity or loss of reflexes, depending on the location of the damaged area of brain tissue.

With high blood pressure

High blood pressure is manifested by a pronounced set of symptoms that affect all vital processes. They may be combined with additional clinical signs characteristic of a particular disease. The symptom complex indicating increased ICP includes:

painful sensations in the head, which are pressing in nature and spread to all areas, often occur immediately after waking up and intensify during the day;
sleep disorders, insomnia;
ineffectiveness of standard drugs against headaches;
nausea and vomiting, decreased heart rate;
a sharp decrease in vision, inability to focus on small objects for a long time, deterioration of memory and concentration.

For headaches that occur as a result of serious pathologies of intracranial pressure, the patient remains in bed. During physical activity, attacks of dizziness, loss of consciousness, and memory loss may occur. Also, peripheral vision disorders periodically appear, the appearance of dark spots and “floaters” in the field of vision is a consequence of permanent fluid pressure on the optic nerve. With exacerbation, the situation worsens, normal reflex responses to stimuli may partially disappear.

In children, behavioral problems and hyperactivity are often associated with increased intracranial pressure. However, these diagnoses may not be related. Increased ICP in infants is indicated by symptoms such as bulging fontanel, rapid increase in head circumference, and divergence of the bones of the skull. Another alarming symptom is the overgrowth of the fontanel too slowly. If these signs appear in combination with general apathy or excitability, poor sleep, lack of innate reflexes, this may indicate pathological fluid pressure inside the skull.

At low pressure

Reduced intracranial pressure can also be determined by clinical signs. The symptoms are not as pronounced as when this indicator increases, but also affect the patient’s well-being and performance. If the pressure inside the skull is not normal, this leads to the following consequences:

headaches, which are especially worse when raising the head;
frequent mood swings, lethargy, apathy, irritability;
simultaneous decrease in blood pressure if the syndrome is caused by a general lack of fluid in the body;
headaches, dizziness, fainting may occur after minor physical exertion;
decreased visual acuity, appearance of dark spots before the eyes;
nausea, abdominal pain;
Possible pain in the heart area that spreads to the chest.

First aid for a sharp decrease in intracranial pressure is to take the correct position. Lying on your back with your head down makes the outflow of fluid difficult, so the pressure is partially restored. This factor may also have diagnostic value - when you raise your head and in a sitting or standing position, the pain intensifies, and lying on your back it decreases slightly.

Diagnostic methods

It is impossible to measure intracranial pressure at home. The only thing a patient can do to help himself is to detect the symptoms in time and consult a doctor for a detailed diagnosis. It is worth understanding that the procedures for measuring ICP are complex and require special equipment and sufficiently qualified medical personnel. All these conditions are available at the Clinical Institute of the Brain, which specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of pathologies of nervous activity.

The only way to accurately determine intracranial pressure is to puncture the cerebrospinal fluid. The technique is invasive and is used only in complex cases. To do this, it is necessary to make a puncture in the lumbar region (into the spinal cord canal) or the ventricles of the brain. The cerebrospinal fluid that is constantly circulating in these spaces will begin to flow out, and its pressure can be measured. The value is measured in mm of water column, and its norm is from 60 to 200 mm. These data are indicative if the patient is in a supine position.

There are also additional diagnostic techniques that allow you to assess the condition of the brain, its ventricles and vascular bed without invasive intervention. These include:

Ultrasound of the brain - the procedure is performed only for children who have not had fusion of the fontanel, and in adults it is impossible due to the density of the bones of the skull;
CT or MRI of the brain - analysis can be done at any age, and the data is quite informative and allows you to obtain a complete three-dimensional image of any area under study;
echoencephalography is a type of ultrasound examination that can be used to determine the degree of filling and pulsation of the cerebral arteries.

It is impossible to diagnose increased intracranial pressure based on the clinical picture alone. However, all this data must be provided to the doctor during the initial examination. Based on them, specialists from the Clinical Institute of the Brain will prescribe all the necessary diagnostic stages, which will allow a full assessment of the patient’s condition.

Treatment and prognosis

Therapeutic measures are prescribed based on diagnostic results. First of all, it is important to get rid of the cause that provokes excessive fluid pressure on the skull. If this phenomenon is caused by traumatic brain injury, the patient is advised to rest completely, take gentle nutrition, and take anti-inflammatory drugs. In some cases, surgical intervention is necessary (in the presence of hematomas between the membranes of the brain, as well as in the presence of injuries that require surgical treatment). Surgery is also prescribed when various tumors are detected in brain tissue that is prone to rapid growth.

A separate set of measures is carried out when diagnosing hydrofecal in a child. To remove excess fluid, a shunt is installed, through which it flows into the abdominal cavity, and the pressure is normalized. The operation is repeated as the child grows, and the patient is constantly monitored. In some children, the need for artificial fluid removal gradually disappears.

Drug therapy for ICP pathologies is secondary. However, drugs are prescribed to eliminate symptoms and make the patient feel better. The following medications may be helpful:

hormonal anti-inflammatory drugs;
neuroprotectors and substances for stimulating blood circulation in the brain - the effectiveness of this group has not been proven, despite its widespread use;
loop diuretics (diuretics) - medications that stimulate the excretion of excess fluid;
osmodiuretics - including reducing the production of cerebrospinal fluid.

The Clinical Brain Institute specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the central nervous system. Increased intracranial pressure is not a separate disease, but a symptom that indicates a number of pathologies. Experienced specialists will accurately determine the cause of such a violation, as well as its severity and possible consequences. It is worth understanding that only timely seeking medical help can guarantee successful treatment and a return to your normal lifestyle without headaches.