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Epidural hemorrhage
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- A protective lining called the dura, which normally
keeps the brain matter intact and supplies it with
nutrition, oxygen-rich blood, and spinal fluid, normally
covers the brain. When the head sustains an injury
(e.g., from a severe blow, fall, or accident), the brain is
jolted within the skull. This may cause the blood
vessels surrounding the brain and dura to tear, allowing the
blood to gush out and accumulate within the space between
the dura and the skull, and eventually clot. This is
known as an epidural hematoma.
- Swelling is due to the blood and clotting pushing
against the confines of the skull, forcing the brain to
compensate by shifting to accommodate the mass and
pressure.
- Depending on the degree of shift and the pressure on
other brain structures, such symptoms as headache,
drowsiness dizziness, vomiting, and pupil dilation may
occur. The patient may have difficulty staying awake,
problems with walking or moving an arm, difficulty with
speech, and (more seriously) problems with breathing and
coma.
- Elderly who have difficulty walking, alcoholics who fall
often, and those taking blood-thinning medicine (e.g.,
warfarin) are especially at risk.
- A CAT scan or an MRI may be done to better visualize the hematoma, so that a neurosurgeon may remove the clot.
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