[Intra-cerebral haemorrhages in the elderly].
La Revue du praticien · 2012-11-01 · Other / unclear
Abstract
Intra-cerebral haemorrhages (ICH) account for 15% of strokes in Europe. They are associated with higher mortality and handicap than cerebral infarcts. The main risk factor is arterial hypertension. Microbleeds are associated with an increased risk of recurrence. The main two causes are lipohyalinosis of the deep perforating arteries, leading to deep ICH and cerebral amyloid angiopathy of the Abeta type, usually sporadic or associated with Alzheimer's disease, leading to recurrent lobar haemorrhages, with white matter changes and microbleeds. After having called the emergency call centre (Number 15 in France, otherwise 112 in the rest of Europe), it is important to normalise coagulation if needed, to control blood pressure and in few cases to perform surgery. To prevent the risk of recurrence, an optimal correction of blood pressure and control of antithrombotics are needed.