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What you need to know about brain abscesses
- Source :
- British Journal of Hospital Medicine. 81:1-7
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- Mark Allen Group, 2020.
-
Abstract
- A brain abscess is a focal accumulation of pus in the brain parenchyma arising from direct inoculation, contiguous spread from local anatomical structures or haematogenous seeding from a remote source of infection. It can result in significant morbidity and mortality, making early diagnosis and treatment vital. Only one fifth of patients present with the classic triad of headache, fever and focal neurological symptoms. More commonly patients show signs and symptoms of raised intracranial pressure alone, such as confusion or reduced conscious level, headache, nausea and vomiting, which can be a presentation of many intracranial pathologies. Distinguishing an abscess from other pathologies such as meningitis and tumours is crucial, as clinically these can present in similar ways, but their management and outcomes are very different. Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging brain scans can help localise the lesion and differentiate ring-enhancing lesions caused by a brain abscess from malignant tumours. Cerebral abscesses are considered a neurosurgical emergency; early stabilisation, diagnosis and management in a neurosurgical centre is important in reducing morbidity and mortality.
- Subjects :
- medicine.medical_specialty
Neurology
business.industry
Nausea
Brain Abscess
General Medicine
medicine.disease
Neurosurgical Procedures
Lesion
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
medicine
Vomiting
Humans
030212 general & internal medicine
Neurosurgery
Radiology
medicine.symptom
business
Abscess
Brain abscess
Meningitis
030217 neurology & neurosurgery
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 17597390 and 17508460
- Volume :
- 81
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- British Journal of Hospital Medicine
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....9a6bffe5704be52e0f583fa3bd514a00