Cerebrovascular Disease: Symptoms, Risk Factors And More

Cerebrovascular, the term, means the flow of the blood in the brain. When a cluster of conditions affect the flow of blood and blood vessels in the brain, it’s known as cerebrovascular disease. The issues of blood flow may occur due to the following reasons: 

• Narrowing of the blood vessels
• Formation of blood clots in the brain (also known thrombosis)
• Blockage of the artery
• Rupture of the blood vessel (also known as brain hemorrhage)

Lack of sufficient flow of blood in the blood vessels can cause harm to the tissues in the brain and may lead to stroke. 

Symptoms Of Cerebrovascular Disease

The symptoms of cerebrovascular disease highly depend on the location of where the injury is on the brain. Different traumas to different areas of the brain can cause different symptoms. However, some of the common symptoms are as follows:

1. Sudden and severe pain in the head
2. Hemiplegia or feeling numb or paralysed on one side of the body
3. Confusion
4. Difficulty in holding conversation and communicating, slurred speech
5. Loss of vision on one side
6. Loss of balance 
7. Losing consciousness 

What Are The Risk Factors That Can Contribute To Cerebrovascular Disease?

Strokes mostly occur in adulthood, however, they are bound to happen to anyone in any age group. The following are the risks that may lead to a stroke: 

1. Smoking – Smoking can lead to long term complications. And if combined with intake of oral contraceptives, it can increase the risk of stroke and cerebrovascular disease. 
2. High blood pressure – High blood pressure can lead to a lot of to the brain. Controlling your blood pressure is a vital step in avoiding stroke of any kind. 
3. Cartoid artery disease or any other artery disease – The cartoid arteries are responsible for supplying blood to the brain and is situated in the neck. Due to deposits of fatty material, this artery can thicken and clot. This can also make you vulnerable to a stroke. 
4. Diabetes – Diabetes, especially untreated, can cause harm to the body and can make the patient extremely vulnerable to strokes. It also has serious health complications. 
5. Physical inactivity and obesity – Long hours of immobility, obesity etc. can add to the list of high risk diseases like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart diseases etc. This can cause vulnerability to stroke. 

Treatment Of Cerebrovascular Diseases

Cerebrovascular treatment requires immediate medical attention. With the onset of symptoms, it is important to provide treatment and rapid assessment as soon as possible. Some people may even require surgery. The surgeon may insert a balloon-tipped catheter into the artery. After this, the balloon is inflated so that the artery opens. After this, a slender, metal mesh tube, or stent is placed inside the carotid artery in order to improve the blood flow in the artery that was previously blocked. The stent is important as it prevents the artery from collapsing or closing up after the procedure is performed. 

For people who experience permanent brain damage, rehabilitation is recommended. They require different rehabititative therapies. Some of these are as follows:

1. Physical therapy
2. Speech therapy
3. Occupational therapy
4. Psychological therapy