What Is Acute Encephalopathy?
Acute encephalopathy syndrome, delirium syndrome (delirium syndrome), is a group of syndromes characterized by a wide range of cognitive disorders, especially those with conscious disturbances. Often caused by diffuse brain, temporary poisoning infection or metabolic disorders. Because it often occurs in diseases such as acute onset, short duration, toxic infections with rapid disease development, and brain trauma, it is also known as acute brain syndrome or acute confusional state.
Acute encephalopathy syndrome
- Chinese name
- Acute encephalopathy syndrome
- Foreign name
- delirium syndrome
- Main features
- Unconsciousness
- Cause
- Diffuse brain, temporary poisoning infection, etc.
- Also known as
- Acute encephalopathy syndrome
- which performed
- Extensive cognitive impairment
- Acute encephalopathy syndrome, delirium syndrome (delirium syndrome), is a group of syndromes characterized by a wide range of cognitive disorders, especially those with conscious disturbances. Often caused by diffuse brain, temporary poisoning infection or metabolic disorders. Because it often occurs in diseases such as acute onset, short duration, toxic infections with rapid disease development, and brain trauma, it is also known as acute brain syndrome or acute confusional state.
- Delirium syndrome
- The diagnosis of delirium syndrome is based on the characteristics of sudden onset, disturbance of consciousness, and other symptoms of cognitive impairment, such as day, light and night. People with physical illness, traumatic brain injury, and a history of alcohol and drug dependence can help diagnose. When the delirium syndrome is identified, the underlying cause should be clarified. Patients with acute schizophrenia and mania can be distinguished from their medical history and mental examination. If in doubt, EEG inspection can be done. Delirium is often accompanied by diffuse slow waves and is parallel to the severity of cognitive impairment and can be identified.
- Delirium is a generalized brain dysfunction caused by many qualitative factors. Organic etiology can be divided into four groups: diseases that originate in the brain, such as infections, tumors, trauma, epilepsy, and stroke; system diseases that affect the brain, especially metabolic and endocrine diseases, systemic infections, Cardiovascular diseases and collagen diseases; poisoning of exogenous substances, that is, poisoning of drugs, industrial, plant or animal origin; withdrawal phenomenon caused by the abuse of addictive substances, mostly occurs in alcohol and sedative hypnotic drug dependence.
- Delirium is particularly prone to occur in elderly patients and appears to be related to the following factors: advanced age and associated cerebral organic disease, visual and hearing disorders, reduced neurotransmitter synthesis (especially acetylcholine is the most prominent), age-related Changes in pharmacodynamics, high prevalence of chronic somatic diseases and susceptibility to acute diseases, weakening of the homeostatic regulation mechanism formed by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, sleep or sensory deprivation, and impaired physical activity Flexibility and psychosocial stress (such as death of a loved one or relocation to a new environment). Due to reduced tolerance of the elderly to the drug, drug poisoning is a common cause of delirium in the elderly, and can even occur at the therapeutic dose of commonly used drugs, such as diuretics, digoxin, anti-Parkinson's drugs, antipsychotics, Depressants and sedative hypnotics. All drugs with anticholinergic activity can easily lead to delirium in the elderly. Common causes of delirium in old age include: congestive heart failure, pneumonia, urinary tract infection, cancer, hypokalemia, dehydration, sodium depletion, cerebral infarction, etc. Some physical diseases that do not directly affect the brain, such as hip fractures, minor surgery under local anesthesia, mild respiratory infections, and severe constipation can also cause delirium.
- Delirium syndrome is a transient mental disorder. If its basic cause is identified and it can be handled in time, most patients can recover after several days to weeks. However, some cases (such as cancer) may be a late manifestation of disease progression. In older patients, the appearance of delirium may be a sign of poor prognosis due to preexisting degenerative or vascular lesions or malnutrition in the brain. Kral (1983) found that in severe cases of elderly delirium requiring hospitalization, half recovered in weeks or months, 1/4 died within a year, and 1/4 could develop clinical signs similar to Alzheimer-type senile dementia