Treatments For Cerebral Edema

Cerebral edema is something that can occur for a variety of reasons and is life-threatening if allowed to continue for too long. At the base level, it is defined as swelling of the brain. This can be due to excess fluids, such as what would occur during a stroke or injury to the head with bleeding. It can also happen if you experience any head trauma. The body produces an inflammation response immediately, and part of this is an increase in swelling at the site of impact. Regardless of the cause, there are treatment options available to prevent complications.

Surgery

A couple of types of surgery can be done to treat cerebral edema. The first is what's called a craniectomy, which is where the surgeon removes a part of the skull that typically surrounds and protects the brain. This allows a space for the brain to expand, rather than to continue pressing against the skull. The compression has the potential to increase pressure and cause tissue death, and this type of surgery can prevent that.

Another option is to remove any lesions on the brain contributing to the swelling. Many lesions can continually trigger the inflammation response by the body, and will, therefore, keep additional fluid flowing to the brain. Removing them can remove the cause of cerebral edema.

Continue reading to reveal the next primary method of treating cerebral edema.

Osmotherapy

Osmotherapy is mainly done by the use of medications, such as mannitol. This medication works to set up a concentration gradient, which is where there is a stronger concentration of a substance in one area compared to another. The fluid will want to migrate to where the concentration of the substance is higher to make the areas have an equal concentration. In this way, the fluids pooling in the brain are drawn out of that area, and the swelling is decreased. Mannitol works in other ways by decreasing the viscosity of the blood. This means blood is more fluid and less thick, and as such, it can move and transport quicker to restore balance.

Continue for the next treatment method for cerebral edema.

Oxygen Therapy

Oxygen therapy for cerebral edema is all about creating a domino effect in your body. The first step is to cause you to hyperventilate, or breathe at a higher rate than you normally would. This is controlled by a doctor. While your breathing rate is increased, you are breathing out an increased amount of carbon dioxide. This change in your body lowers the increased pressure in the brain and helps to reduce swelling. This entire process will be monitored very closely because there are damaging effects of having your carbon dioxide level staying too low for an extended period.

Keep going to learn more treatments for cerebral edema.

IV Fluids

Adding fluids when someone already has an increase in fluids may seem counterintuitive, but it's actually a prevention method. When a person experiences cerebral edema, their normal brain function is impacted. This includes the ability to keep blood pressure under control. If blood pressure falls too low, there can be organ failure and tissue death. IV fluids prevent this by increasing the circulating blood volume and keeping blood pressure at a manageable level. In addition, achieving fluid balance in the body is going to put the person at a better advantage should they need additional interventions, like an operation.

Get ready for the next treatment for cerebral edema now.

Inducing Hypothermia

Inducing hypothermia means a team of medical professionals is going to lower the patient's core body temperature intentionally. You can think of this like icing a sprained ankle on a much larger scale. The cold temperature is going to do a couple of things. The first is it will lower the body's metabolism or the rate at which it is burning through energy. This means overall fewer requirements for the body. The cold is also going to reduce swelling, just as it will on a sprained ankle. It causes vasoconstriction, or the narrowing of the blood vessels, to the area of injury, which lowers the inflammation response and causes a decrease in swelling.