Vertebro basilar insufficiency: symptoms and treatment

At this stage of time, more and more often people meet with such a term as vertebrobasilar insufficiency (VBI), but not everyone knows what it is.

Vertebrobasilar insufficiency - these are disorders of the brain, which were caused by a decrease in the blood supply to the area supplied by the main and vertebral arteries.

Causes of the disease

Vertebrobasilar insufficiency can develop as a result of a number of different reasons, but the most common of them are the following:

• osteochondrosis in the area of ​​the cervical spine;
• injury to the neck, which led to compression in the region of the vertebral artery;
• atherosclerosis and pathologies associated with vascular conductivity;
• high blood pressure;
• FMD – condition, defiantconstriction (stenosis) andstretchingwalls (aneurysm) arteriesmiddlecaliber;
• hypoplasia in the region of the vertebral arteries;
• inflammatory processes in the vessels;
• pathologies of the scalene muscle, which provoke compression in the region of the vertebral artery;
• Congenital heart defect;
• stratification in the arteries of the vertebrobasilar type: as a result of deformation of the walls between the tissues, blood begins to seep;
• the occurrence of a blood clot in the area of ​​the arteries;
• diabetes as a result, the defeat of small vessels in the brain area is observed;
• antiphospholipid syndrome - a disease, as a result of which the number of thrombosis increases (thrombosis) and the permeability of blood through the arteries decreases;
• the basilar artery is compressed as a result of the formation of pathologies such as spondylosis, spondylolisthesis and hernia in the spine;
• predisposition to disease: manifests itself in the form of painful conditions that lead to problems in the formation of blood vessels;
• genetic type of predisposition to the disease.

Symptoms

Symptoms and signs of the disease are usually divided into two main groups:

1. Temporary manifestations.
2. Constant symptoms.

Temporary manifestations are characterized by different durations - from a couple of hours to several days. At the same time, they manifest themselves in the form of ischemic attacks of a transient type, which are characterized by acute disturbances in blood circulation in the brain area.

Most often, temporary symptoms are distinguished by the following manifestations:

• painful manifestations in the back of the head, are pressing in nature;
• persistent discomfort in the cervical region near the spinal column;
• dizziness.

Persistent symptoms are characterized by an increase in manifestations as the disease progresses, and in as a result, they can cause ischemia, which, in turn, provoke the risk of manifestation vertebrobasilar stroke.

The main symptoms of the disease include the following manifestations:

• severe headaches that press on the head or cause throbbing, spreading to the occipital region;
• dizziness, with their frequent manifestations is possible fainting;
• feeling of nausea;
• hearing impairment;
• constant noise in ears;
• attentiveness and memory significantly deteriorate;
• the appearance of distraction;
• vision problems - there is no clarity of the image, there are dark dots in front of the eyes, diplopia is occasionally observed (instead of one object, a person sees two);
• loss of strength, especially pronounced in the afternoon;
• fast fatiguability;
• unreasonable aggression, excessive irritability, panic;
• heavy sweating;
• heat in the face and hands;
• tachycardia of the heart;
• the throat is sore, there is a feeling that there is a foreign object.

If, after the onset of the above manifestations, vertebrobasilar syndrome was not diagnosed, and accordingly, no measures were taken to treat it, the development of the following symptoms:

• significant difficulty in swallowing;
• deterioration in speech clarity due to numbness in the mouth area;
• the occurrence of hallucinations;
• complete loss of vision;
• drop attacks (unexpected falls);
• not excluded the occurrence of ischemic stroke.

Manifestations of diseases in children

Previously, medical professionals believed that vertebrobasilar syndrome was an adult disease, but after time have found out that in fact the disease can affect even small children from the age of three age.

According to experts, the causes of the onset of the disease in children are congenital pathologies in the vertebral and basilar arteries and various kinds of trauma.

If the child has the following symptoms, then this is a clear sign that the baby may have vertebrobasilar syndrome:

• very fatigue;
• the child constantly cries and feels unreasonable anxiety;
• there is frequent drowsiness;
• posture is sharply disturbed;
• while in a stuffy room, the child begins to feel very dizzy, a similar state can result in fainting.

Features of the course of vertebrobasilar syndrome in osteochondrosis

To date, the occurrence of vertebrobasilar insufficiency against the background cervical osteochondrosis already does not shock anyone, because in 70% of situations of the development of this syndrome, it is this disease that is its provocateur. In this case, oxygen starvation of the brain is justified by the compression of the vertebral arteries, altered by the action of the disease of the vertebrae, past which the path of the vessels lies.

With osteochondrosis, pathological deformities of the intervertebral discs are present in the neck area, changing, they destroy the fibrous ring that connects the vertebrae. The formation of a hernia of the intervertebral type is not excluded. Instead of cartilaginous tissue, bone is formed, the gradual growth of which leads to limitation of the mobility of the neck and causes painful sensations.

It is quite logical that these changes will leave a certain imprint on the nearby vessels. They are in danger of kinking as a result of the deformation of the spine inherent in the third stage of osteochondrosis. And due to the fact that osteochondrosis still refers to diseases of the older age group (despite the increasing cases of its manifestation in young people), then to deformities of the spine, manifestations of vascular atherosclerosis can also be added (vertebrobasilar arterial system syndrome may occur), which is also inherent in older age. This situation will lead to the fact that vertebrobasilar syndrome will begin to develop at an accelerated rate.

The deformed cervical zone of the spine negatively affects the nearby blood-carrying vessels from the heart to the organs, in as a result, there is a decrease in the amount of blood transported to the brain, due to which its individual plots. For example, the cerebellum is responsible for coordinating the movement of a person, and if little blood gets into it, then the person is guaranteed dizziness and fainting. In turn, oxygen starvation of the cerebral cortex can lead to loss of clarity of vision and bifurcation of objects.

The main reason for the development of osteochondrosis, and as a result of this and vertebrobasilar insufficiency, is the wrong way of life. Low physical activity, unhealthy diet (excessive consumption of carbohydrates and fats), poor posture as a result of sedentary work, the presence of constant stress. To these factors can also be added the presence of a variety of injuries, infections, severe hypothermia, poor physical fitness, hard physical work.

If you start therapy for osteochondrosis in the early stages, then the vertebrobasilar insufficiency that has arisen against its background will quickly pass.

Diagnosis of pathology

It is quite difficult to diagnose the disease, since most of its symptoms are identical to a number of other diseases.

Therefore, a number of functional tests are used to confirm the presence of circulatory failure. For example, a patient is asked to track a rapidly moving object. If in the process of these actions a person develops a headache or dizziness, then this is the clearest sign of the presence of vertebrobasilar insufficiency.

In addition, a de Klein test is performed in the course of which the patient turns his head in different directions and then throws it back. If, after these actions, the above symptoms appear (dizziness, headache), then this indicates the presence of VBI.

Among the hardware-type diagnostic methods, the following are widely used:

• Ultrasound examination of cerebral vessels is the most popular method for detecting this disease, it is also used to assess the state of blood circulation in the brain.
• MR angiography - with its help, you can visualize the main part of the lesions in the brain and neck, and then determine their size, nature and degree.
• SpiralCT scan - is used to visualize the lumens and walls of blood vessels.
• Digital (digital) subtractionangiography - another method of vascular imaging.
• Rheoncephalography - makes it possible to study the cerebral type of blood circulation.
• Conducting neuropsychological tests. With the help of specially prepared tests, a person's perception of the disease and the restrictions created by it are studied.

Therapy for vertebrobasilar syndrome

The chosen method of therapy for the disease directly depends on the nature of the vascular lesion.

At the initial detection of the disease, especially if it is a syndrome of the vertebrobasilar arterial system, a number of rules must be observed:

• a blood pressure measurement procedure should be performed every day;
• you should go on a diet in which foods such as salt, white bread, various semi-finished and smoked foods, canned food, fried and fatty foods should be reduced in the diet;
• it is required to give up such a bad habit as smoking;
• alcoholic beverages should be removed from your diet, with the exception of a small amount of red wine;
• all physical activity should be of medium intensity.

If, after such changes in life, no improvement is observed for 3-6 months, then you should switch to medication and physiotherapy.

In the presence of VBI against the background of cervical osteochondrosis, treatment includes the use of the following groups of drugs:

1. Products and drugs that thin the blood and prevent blood clots. The main periods of their appointment are spring and autumn. They start to consume with small doses, which are gradually increased. If a certain drug from this group does not give the desired effect, then several similar drugs are used.
2. Antiplatelet agents - reduce blood clotting. Their use is required to prevent blood clots. The most common drug in this group is Aspirin. The disadvantage of such funds is their strong effect on the stomach and intestines, which can provoke the development of bleeding.
3. Nootropic and metabolic drugs - used by the functioning of the brain. These funds include Seamax, Glycine, Actovegin.
4. Medicines to regulate blood pressure. Their appointment is not made to all patients and depends entirely on the individual characteristics of the organism.

In turn, the following drugs are used to combat symptoms:

• from dizziness;
• pain relievers;
• drugs aimed at combating depression;
• antiemetics;
• hypnotic.

If the disease is in an advanced state, then, apart from surgery, no other methods of treatment can help.

At this stage of time, the following operations are performed:

• deletionintervertebralhernia;
• endarterectomy - during its implementation, the atherosclerotic plaque is removed along with the affected area of ​​the artery;
• restoration of the primary appearance of intervertebral discs using a laser;
• angioplasty - a special stent is installed in the artery to prevent blockage of the lumen and maintain a stable level of blood permeability.

An important condition for a quality treatment of the disease is consultation with a professional doctor. There can be no thoughts about self-medication, since it can lead to significant complications during the course of the disease, and even, in general, death. It is required to fully follow the recommendations of the attending physician, then a positive effect will soon be noticeable.

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