What are the symptoms of cerebral hemorrhage?

Written by Tang Li Li
Neurology
Updated on September 20, 2024
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Patients with cerebral hemorrhage typically experience sudden headaches during physical activity or emotional excitation as their initial symptom, which may be accompanied by nausea and vomiting. In severe cases, vomiting can be projectile, consisting of stomach contents. If the patient has stress ulcers leading to bleeding and erosion of the gastric mucosa, they may vomit a coffee-ground-like liquid, which is a mixture of gastric juices and blood. Additionally, patients may also exhibit disturbances in consciousness, such as drowsiness, stupor, or even coma. If the patient is conscious, one may observe hemiplegia or paralysis, sometimes accompanied by speech impairments or psychiatric symptoms. Some patients may also experience epileptic seizures.

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Principles of Treatment for Cerebral Hemorrhage

For patients with cerebral hemorrhage, the main principle of treatment is to control the blood pressure in a relatively stable state. Blood pressure should not be too high or too low. If it is too low, it can easily lead to insufficient cerebral perfusion pressure, thus causing local cerebral tissue ischemia and hypoxia, leading to the occurrence of cerebral infarction. If the blood pressure is too high, it can easily exceed the regulatory function of the blood vessels, often causing secondary hemorrhage. Secondly, it is important to promptly monitor the patient's vital signs, observe the patient's consciousness, pupils, and limb movement, and timely perform a follow-up head CT scan to dynamically observe the changes in the patient's condition.

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Causes of cerebral hemorrhage

The most common cause of cerebral hemorrhage is hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage. Patients with hypertension who do not adequately control their blood pressure, which frequently fluctuates, can lead to hardening of the cerebral vessels. The elasticity of the cerebral vessel walls diminishes, and when the blood pressure rises sharply, it can cause the cerebral vessels to rupture, leading to cerebral hemorrhage. This is the most common cause of cerebral hemorrhage, accounting for over 80%. Another common cause of cerebral hemorrhage is the rupture of cerebral aneurysms, which often leads to subarachnoid hemorrhage. Patients with this condition experience severe headaches, consciousness disturbances, and restlessness. Subarachnoid hemorrhage is a relatively severe medical condition with a high mortality rate. Additionally, some cerebral hemorrhages are caused by trauma, leading to cerebral contusion, skull fractures, subdural hematoma, and epidural hematoma. These causes account for a relatively small proportion of clinical cases.

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Sequelae of cerebral hemorrhage

The most common sequelae of cerebral hemorrhage is hemiplegia, which is specifically characterized by reduced muscle strength in the limbs on one side, difficulty in movement or complete immobility, often accompanied by sensory impairments on the same side, such as reduced sensation to cold, heat, pain, etc., or complete numbness. Sometimes there may also be vision loss on the affected side, as well as aphasia, headache, vertigo, and nausea.

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Is cerebral hemorrhage serious?

Brain hemorrhage is relatively serious. In most cases, the condition of patients with brain hemorrhage progresses quickly and worsens gradually, often leading to high rates of disability or mortality. Additionally, brain hemorrhages can affect the patient's level of consciousness, resulting in states of stupor or coma. On this basis, it is common for several complications to occur, such as significant pulmonary infections, acid-base imbalances, electrolyte disturbances, hypoproteinemia, or deep vein thrombosis in the lower limbs. These issues can easily cause patients to experience unilateral or bilateral limb paralysis, abnormal limb sensation accompanied by a decline in cognitive functions, aphasia, and other clinical manifestations.

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Is cerebral hemorrhage serious?

The critical period for cerebral hemorrhage is generally around 14 days, as it primarily involves overcoming two most dangerous phases. The first phase is within three days of the cerebral hemorrhage. This period is most feared for the potential increase in bleeding. Often, if blood pressure is not well controlled, it can easily lead to further bleeding, especially within the first three days which has the highest incidence. The second phase is approximately 10-14 days after the cerebral hemorrhage, because this period marks the peak of cerebral swelling and cerebral vasospasm. The main concern here is severe cerebral swelling and cerebral vasospasm, which can lead to cerebral infarction, and potentially extensive cerebral infarction, possibly resulting in death. Trepanation surgery may be necessary to save the patient.