What is an increased intracranial pressure?
The brain together with blood vessels, cerebrospinal fluid and spinal cord are contained inside the bone walls of the skull. Normally the pressure inside the skull, known as intracranial pressure, is regulated, so it remains in certain limits. Increased intracranial pressure, when the pressure inside the skull is raised above the normal range, is potentially dangerous because the brain may be damaged, either by direct pressure on its tissues or due to the effects of increased blood vessel pressure leading to blood decreased. Possible causes of elevated intracranial pressure include brain bleeding, tumor or increase in the amount of cerebrospinal fluid that circulates around the brain. Increased intracranial pressure is generally considered an emergency and the patient is placed on the fan, while the liquid is exhausted from the skull.
Normal intracranial pressure depends on the fact that the volume of the brain remains constant. At the same time, the cerebrospinal fluid is constantly creating and absorbing to maintain a stable level, and the blood flows through the brain is regulated to remain inNormal limits. When intracranial pressure begins to rise, another fluid is absorbed first, reducing the cerebrospinal fluid pressure in an effort to return the overall pressure inside the skull to its earlier level.
If the pressure continues to grow, it will reach a critical point where changes in cerebrospinal fluid can no longer increase. A person may have an extended pupil and usually experience headaches and vomiting. In the arteries, increased blood pressure, slowing and irregularity of heart rhythm and respiratory problems may occur. As the condition proceeds, part of the brain may be pushed through the hole at the bottom of the skull and the blood flow of the brain begins to fail. These changes do not have the death of the brain if it is not treated.
A number of conditions can cause increased intracranial pressure. Some do so by enlargement of the brain itself, such as swelling of brain tissue observed in diseases such as meningitis or tumor growth. Other conditions increase the pressure by meansthat they occupy space around the brain, such as bleeding after head injury or hemorrhagic stroke, or accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid, which may be caused by excessive production or blocked drainage.
The treatment of increased intracranial pressure involves admission to the hospital and intensive care. The patient is usually placed on the fan to help breathe and give medication to combat brain swelling, while cerebrospinal fluid is exhausted from the skull to reduce the pressure inside. If there are curable causes of elevated pressure, such as a tumor or blood clot that can be removed, they are solved with them as soon as possible.