Vasculitis—Brain Diseases

The brain is the control center of the body. It controls thoughts, memory, speech, and movement. It regulates the function of many organs. When the brain is healthy, it works quickly and automatically. However, when problems occur, the results can be devastating.

Inflammation in the brain can lead to problems such as vision loss, weakness and paralysis. Loss of brain cells, which happens if you suffer a stroke, can affect your ability to think clearly. Brain tumors can also press on nerves and affect brain function. Some brain diseases are genetic. And we do not know what causes some brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

The symptoms of brain diseases vary widely depending on the specific problem. In some cases, damage is permanent. In other cases, treatments such as surgery, medicines, or physical therapy can correct the source of the problem or improve symptoms.

• Basal ganglia dysfunction (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Brain abscess (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Brain surgery (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Central pontine myelinolysis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) collection (Medical Encyclopedia)
• EEG (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Hepatic encephalopathy (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Pseudotumor cerebri (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (Medical Encyclopedia)

Also called: Angiitis

Vasculitis is an inflammation of the blood vessels. It happens when the body’s immune system attacks the blood vessel by mistake. It can happen because of an infection, a medicine, or another disease. The cause is often unknown.

Vasculitis can affect arteries, veins and capillaries. Arteries are vessels that carry blood from the heart to the body’s organs. Veins are the vessels that carry blood back to the heart. Capillaries are tiny blood vessels that connect the small arteries and veins.

When a blood vessel becomes inflamed, it can

• Narrow, making it more difficult for blood to get through
• Close off completely so that blood can’t get through
• Stretch and weaken so much that it bulges. The bulge is called an aneurysm. If it bursts, it can cause dangerous bleeding inside the body.

Symptoms of vasculitis can vary, but usually include fever, swelling and a general sense of feeling ill. The main goal of treatment is to stop the inflammation. Steroids and other medicines to stop inflammation are often helpful.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

• Allergic vasculitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Aortic angiography (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Cerebral angiography (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Henoch-Schonlein purpura (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Necrotizing vasculitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Polyarteritis nodosa (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Takayasu arteritis (Medical Encyclopedia)