Paresis
Causes and symptoms of paresis
Paresis is partial paralysis. In other words, it can be characterized as a certain impossibility of performing various actions and movements due to serious damage to the important central and peripheral nervous systems.
Experts conditionally divide this disease into two large groups. The first is organic, when it is possible to find out exactly why a particular nerve impulse does not always reach the muscle. The second group is functional, which are diagnosed with dangerous damage to the cerebral cortex.
The main types of paresis are nerve paresis, limb paresis, laryngeal paresis and distal paresis. Dangerous nerve paresis is often a partial limitation of the actions of the musculature of the human body, which occurs as a result of a specific part of it, when the muscles cease to perform their usual human functions. This serious disorder is associated mainly with disorders of the nervous system.
Another type is paresis of the limbs, usually triggered by a dangerous cerebral hemorrhage. It is considered a fairly common disease among the population of many countries. At least several million people suffer greatly from this partial loss of important limb functionality. Moreover, if only one limb is immobilized, then monoparesis is diagnosed. Paraparesis is an ailment when two arms or both legs are affected. With tetraparesis, both the lower and upper limbs move poorly.
Laryngeal paresis is an incomplete paralysis of the vast laryngeal cavity. This species can be divided into three small subspecies. Myopathic paresis is provoked by various inflammatory processes that are possible in the muscles, as well as all kinds of pathologies of the nerves, usually pathways and even centers of brain activity. They include laryngitis and tuberculosis.
Neuropathic paresis occurs due to various changes in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Such serious changes in the central nervous system always occur due to hysteria, and in the peripheral - due to the vagus nerve. These serious pathologies are often associated with injuries and other inflammations of the cervical or thoracic regions.
Distal paresis of the hands makes it impossible to perform a variety of easy movements. It is divided into two subgroups - central and peripheral. With this type of disease, the patient cannot simply clench his hand into a fist. Moreover, quite often, along with such elementary compression, extension in the wrist joint of a sick person also occurs.
Causes of paresis
The main causes of distal paresis are birth trauma in the important area of the brachial plexus. Other causes are hemorrhages, strokes, tumors, prolonged migraines, typical multiple sclerosis, significant damage to the hemispheres of the upper cervical spinal cord and brain, as well as other injuries.
The causes of paresis of the larynx lie in polyetiological pathology. quite often this type of disease develops against the background of other infectious diseases. Often, paresis of the larynx can be diagnosed in inflammatory diseases such as laryngotracheitis, typhoid fever. syphilis, botulism and syringomyelia.
The causes of paresis of the facial nerve are the presence of such ailments as herpes, flu, rubella, adenoviruses, CMV and chicken pox. However, the connection of these diseases with paresis of the facial nerve has not been fully proven. In most cases of paresis of the extremities, various injuries and accidents can be the reasons.
Paresis symptoms
A progressive increase in muscle tone can be attributed to the main symptoms of this disease. You can also note a serious violation of reflexes and hyperreflexia. In this case, the clinical picture of typical laryngeal paresis is based on various voice disorders, as well as breathing disorders. Its main manifestations can be noted - a decrease in the sonority of the voice, loss of voice timbre, whispering speech, hoarseness, hoarseness and rattling of the voice. In addition, an important symptom is fatigue with minor vocal loads.
With paresis of the extremities, not only an increase in muscle tone is observed, but also a significant violation of reflexes, and hyperreflexia is also noted. With paresis of the facial nerve, severe soreness and rather unpleasant sensations are felt. Asymmetry or partial immobility of the face are the main signs of this type of disease. At the same time, it is difficult for the patient to just smile and he experiences colossal difficulties in ordinary conversation.
With paresis of the larynx, serious breathing disorders are noticeable, since it is difficult for air to enter the patient's respiratory tract. In some patients, dangerous asphyxia occurs. Typical myopathic paresis of the larynx with a dangerous bilateral lesion is manifested by significant phonation disorders. In neuropathic paresis of the larynx, muscle weakness is often noted, as well as an expanding glottis, irritability, sleep disturbances and fatigue are inherent in all types of paresis.
Diagnosis of paresis
The diagnosis of paresis usually requires the participation of specialists such as neuropsychiatric specialists, otolaryngologists, neurosurgeons, psychiatrists and pulmonologists. When diagnosing such a disease, an important role is played by a thorough history taking, as well as identifying the tendency of each individual patient to typical psychogenic reactions.
In most cases, the modern examination of patients with laryngeal paresis is always carried out with microlaryngoscopy. Mandatory x-rays and CT scans of the larynx are also performed. Then it is necessary to assess the neuromuscular transmission and muscle contractility. Diagnosis of paresis of the facial nerve is almost always specific and there are no questions, the analysis of concomitant injuries gives the necessary accuracy. X-rays can be taken to confirm the diagnosis.
When diagnosing limbs, specialists always take into account the spread of existing muscle weakness and its localization.
Treatment of paresis
Usually, the primary manifestation of paresis is always a certain discomfort in the muscles. In the absence of the necessary treatment, it is possible that such a serious disease as paresis will develop into complete paralysis. In most cases, in places of formation of partial immobility, patients feel severe pain. Moreover, if the ailment is accompanied by other acute diseases, then its development occurs rather quickly, on the basis of which treatment is prescribed.
The main treatment usually consists in the initial identification and further elimination of the main cause of the disease. Often, various pathologies develop into paresis. With strokes, special restorative therapy is always effective. In case of injuries and other injuries, specialists carry out the inevitable stitching of peripheral nerves. If tumors or other neoplasms are found that put significant pressure on the nerves, then operations are prescribed to remove them.
Among other things, special massage courses are often shown, which are designed to help support muscles in tone, since they can atrophy from constant partial immobilization. In the treatment of various types of paresis, the willpower of each patient and his decisiveness are of no small importance. The patient must be willing to recover in order to activate the internal forces of the body.
Prevention of paresis
The main prevention of paresis is the normalization of the load after the restoration of muscle function. It is also recommended to avoid hypothermia. With paresis of the larynx, it is necessary to exclude a long stay of a person in dusty rooms. In order to completely exclude relapses, it is necessary to beware, especially at first, from various infectious diseases and various neuroses.
Article author: Mochalov Pavel Alexandrovich | d. m. n. therapist
Education: Moscow Medical Institute. IM Sechenov, specialty - "General Medicine" in 1991, in 1993 "Occupational Diseases", in 1996 "Therapy".
