Why there is dropsy of the brain in newborns?

Huge joy, but also the same responsibility literally fall upon the parents with the appearance of the baby in the family. For newborns, it is necessary to observe, in a timely manner, visit the pediatrician and strictly follow all his recommendations.

At opening of deviations or rejections in development there and then to address to the doctor. Newborns are often exposed to all sorts of diseases. One of them is intracranial pressure: hydrocephalus or edema of the brain in newborns is a serious disease. And it requires immediate examination and treatment.

How does the dropsy of the brain develop in children:

• , the amount of cerebrospinal fluid rapidly increasing many times over;
• in size increases the skull of the child;
• the shape of the skull also changes: the frontal part clearly protrudes forward, the facial upper part of the skull becomes substantially larger;
• fontanels swell and expand;
• worsens the general condition of the child;
• under the lower eyelids shift eyes.

The more this fluid, the worse the baby feels. The head does not grow in size, if dropsy occurs in older children - the bones of the skull are stronger. Symptoms of dropsy of the brain in newborns are: both the movement of the eyeballs, and twitching of the handles and legs, and violation of the pulse, and pallor, and chattering of the chin.

When it proceeds in an acute form, drowsiness, vomiting, severe headaches begin. The baby becomes sluggish, apathetic, often behind psychomotor development. But the diagnosis can only be a doctor. Therefore, examination is necessary if any pathologies are observed in the development of the child's skull.

Causes of the disease

Why is hydrocephalus? Develop hydrocephalus in newborns can already in the womb with vices and abnormalities in the formation of the spinal cord and the brain, be the consequence of infectious diseases transferred by the mother( cytomegalovirus, toxoplasmosis, herpes).

Often, hydrocephalus appears due to birth trauma or in premature infants, with disorders in the development of the child's nervous system and vascular malformations, tumors.

Antenatal diagnosis in the modern world is at a high level: an ultrasound examination of a pregnant woman will detect a similar pathology at the 16th-20th week of fetal development.

The insidious disease of dropsy happens:

• general,
• internal,
• external.

This is determined by the area of ​​the greatest accumulation of cerebral fluid in newborns. Only according to the results of the examination, treatment is prescribed.

Treatment of dropsy of the brain

Of course this is not going to be a serious disease, you need mandatory examinations from a neurosurgeon and strict control over the development of the child. The only method to combat hydrocephalus is a special operation. And the sooner a decision is made about consent by parents, the better.

Only slow the course of the disease by medical methods, but do not eliminate the root cause of the disease. The operation prevents further growth of the child's head, but the increase will never be the same size.

The earlier the operation is done, the less the consequences and the easier the baby will recover and enter the habitual rhythm of life. Therefore, consent to an operation with hydrocephalus is a must, otherwise there is a risk of losing a child.

A successful operation will lead to a full recovery with a return to normal life. Two types of operations can be performed to date: shunt and endoscopic. More preference is given to the second kind.

So it is not necessary to panic parents, but to make a measured decision and together to achieve full recovery of the baby.