Violation of the autonomic nervous system or autonomic dysfunction is a set of clinical symptoms of impaired functional activity of the autonomic department of the central nervous system, which provoke a malfunction of the internal organs. Often this pathology manifests itself in childhood during the period of growth of the child, in adolescence it is observed in 100% of cases. This phenomenon is considered not an independent ailment, but a syndrome, which accompanies any pathology. Typically, such a disorder becomes the cause of the development of neurosis, which significantly worsen the quality of human life.
Description and description of the problem
Autonomic dysfunction is a combination of functional disorders, which is caused by a disorder in vascular tone and the development of neuroses that worsen a person’s quality of life. In this condition, the normal response of the vessels to internal or external impulses is lost, while they either expand or narrow.
The ANS monitors the activities of organs and systems in the body, which are influenced by various internal and external causes. It contributes to the adaptation of the body to changing environmental conditions. This nervous system has two subsystems in its structure:
- Sympathetic NS contributes to intestinal contraction, increased sweating, heart rate, vasoconstriction, increased blood pressure as a result of increased activity of the heart.
- Parasympathetic NS contributes to muscle contraction, stimulation of the activity of all glands in the body, vasodilation, and pressure reduction as a result of a slowdown in heart function.
There is a balance between the activities of these subsystems; if this balance is disturbed, the functioning of the internal organs and the whole organism breaks down, and the syndrome of autonomic dysfunction develops. This disorder is a condition in which the symptoms of somatic pathologies are manifested in the absence of organic lesions. These symptoms, which are psychogenic in nature, force a person to visit various doctors, who, in turn, do not reveal any diseases in them. In this case, the dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system causes a person a lot of suffering.
ANS dysfunction today in medicine is very common, it is observed in 15% of children and 80% of adults. The disease usually appears between the ages of twenty to forty years. Women are more susceptible to the development of pathology. Autonomic dysfunction in adolescents always manifests itself.
Causes of the development of the disease
The main reason for the development of pathology is a violation of regulation by the ANS, the development of which is influenced by the following factors:
- Hereditary and genetic predisposition.
- Change in hormonal levels during puberty or menopause.
- Diseases of the endocrine system.
- Brain pathology of organic genesis as a result of trauma, tumor, stroke and other things.
- Long stress and emotional stress.
- Character features, in the form of suspiciousness and anxiety.
- Presence of addictions.
- Wrong diet.
- Tendency to allergic reactions.
- Intoxication of the circulatory and nervous systems.
- The influence of radiation, vibration, noise as a result of work.
- Surgical interventions.
- The use of strong antibiotics for a long time.
- The presence of chronic infections in the body.
- Fetal hypoxia during pregnancy of a woman, birth trauma, in which dysfunction of the autonomic system in children develops.
As you can see, there are many reasons for the development of pathology. In most cases, such phenomena pass on their own as a person grows older. But sometimes a disease can cause inconvenience to a person all his life.
Forms of pathology
The syndrome of autonomic dysfunction can be of several forms:
- The cardiac or cardiac form is characterized by the appearance of a fear of death, as a result of which blood pressure, palpitations increase, the face turns pale, excitement and anxiety develop, which manifest themselves in motor activity. Also, a person's body temperature rises. This is due to an increase in the activity of the sympathetic nervous system.
- The hypotonic form is caused by a decrease in blood pressure, the development of cyanosis of the extremities, the appearance of acne, weakness, bradycardia, and shortness of breath. In severe cases, involuntary urination, discomfort in the peritoneum, and allergies can be observed. Such symptoms are associated with increased activity of parasympathetic NS.
- Mixed autonomic dysfunction manifests itself as an alternation of symptoms of the first two forms.
Types of ANS Disorders
It is customary to distinguish several types of disorders of the autonomic nervous system:
- Somatoform vegetative dysfunction, the treatment of which is quite successful. Such a pathology is most common. It is characterized by the manifestation of neurosis in the form of signs of various diseases of a chronic nature, which actually do not exist. In this case, panic attacks, psychogenic cough, dizziness and digestive upset are often observed. This phenomenon is associated with chronic stress and depression.
- Damage to the cerebral cortex that develops as a result of an accident, brain injuries, CNS pathology. In this case, the person feels very dizzy, his blood pressure decreases, and frequent urination and diarrhea develops. After such attacks, the patient complains of weakness and lethargy.
- Ongoing irritation of peripheral NS structures often occurs before menstruation, with urolithiasis, and pain in the neck. Such a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system manifests symptoms clearly, which is associated with the development of serious pathologies in the body. If any signs of the disease appear, you should visit a doctor.
Symptoms and signs of the disease
The initial stage of the development of pathology is characterized by the development of neurosis, which provokes the further course of the disease. Neurosis is caused by a violation of vascular tone, skin sensitivity, muscle cell nutrition, allergic reactions and disorders of the internal organs. First, all the signs of neurasthenia appear, then autonomic nervous dysfunction shows symptoms in the form of the following disorders:
- Astheno-neurotic syndrome in which there is constant fatigue, decreased performance, sensitivity to weather conditions, exhaustion, noise intolerance, adaptation disorder.
- The syndrome of mental disorders is expressed in a decrease in mood and motor activity, lethargy, the development of sensitivity, sentimentality, tearfulness, hypochondria. A person develops a strong anxiety, which he is not able to control.
- Cardiovascular syndrome manifests itself in the form of pains in the heart that appear after nervous tension or stress. The pain does not stop with medicines, blood pressure begins to fluctuate, there is a rapid heartbeat.
- Cardialgic syndrome is characterized by the appearance of heart pain of a different nature, which occurs after physical exertion, emotional experiences.
- Cider of vascular disorders, in which edema and hyperemia of the extremities develops, irritability appears. In severe cases, a stroke may develop.
- Respiratory syndrome is caused by the development of shortness of breath at the time of emotional experience, a feeling of lack of air. In severe cases, choking is possible.
- Cerebrovascular syndrome, in which migraine develops, irritability, intelligence is impaired.
- Neurogastric syndrome is characterized by the development of flatulence, constipation, heartburn, hiccups, belching.
Autonomic dysfunction begins to manifest symptoms in childhood. Children with this pathology often get sick, complain of malaise when the weather changes. Usually the symptoms go away with age, but this is not always observed.
Most often, patients who have a generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder or adaptation disorder get to the doctor.
Diagnostic measures
Due to the large number of symptoms and signs of manifestation, the diagnosis of “autonomic dysfunction” is a difficult task.
The doctor studies the history of the disease, listens to the patient’s complaints and prescribes various diagnostic tests. In this case, it is necessary to examine several doctors, for example, a cardiologist, neurologist and therapist. Often, an electrocardiogram, rheovasography, gastroscopy, ultrasound, laboratory blood and urine tests, FGDS, MRI are used as a diagnostic method. It is very important to examine the patient’s nervous system using electroencephalography and CT.
It is very important that the doctor can see the psychopathological signs of the disease, which play a decisive role in the correct diagnosis and treatment effectiveness. Typically, autonomic dysfunction is accompanied by emotional-affective disorders, which include anxiety and depression, as well as phobias, hysteria, and other pathologies. The main symptom of the disease is a person’s anxiety, which can not be controlled.
Based on the results of research and the symptoms of the disease, the doctor makes an accurate diagnosis and develops treatment tactics. If a vegetative dysfunction is suspected, it is recommended to undergo a full examination to exclude the risk of developing serious pathologies, the symptoms of which may be similar to the disease.
Pathology therapy
Dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system requires complex treatment, including non-drug therapy, physiotherapy, exercise therapy, normalization of the day and nutrition.
As prescribed by the doctor, medication can be used to eliminate the unpleasant symptoms of the pathology during seizures. As medications are prescribed:
- tranquilizers, for example, "Phenazepam",
- antipsychotics, such as "Sonapaks",
- nootropic drugs ("Piracetam"),
- sleeping pills
- antidepressants
- sedatives
- heart and vascular drugs
- vitamins.
In some cases, you may need to take hypotonic drugs, for example, Corvalol.
Usually, drug treatment should last at least four weeks, then the drugs carefully begin to cancel, gradually reducing their dosage. With the rapid withdrawal of drugs, the risk of developing a relapse of the disease increases. The presence of signs of dysfunction suggests that therapy should be prolonged, possibly supplementing it with other groups of medications. On average, the course of treatment should be from two to six months.
Non-drug therapy
Patients must adhere to all doctor's prescriptions:
- Avoid stressful situations, emotional stress. Positive emotions are recommended in this case.
- Eat properly. Limiting the use of salt, coffee and black strong tea.
- Normalize the period of sleep and wakefulness. Doctors recommend sleeping about eight hours a day in a ventilated area.
- Visit the pool, play sports. Take walks.
- Take a massage course.
Autonomic dysfunction treatment also involves a therapist who will help identify the causes of the development of pathology and eliminate them. It must be remembered that the treatment of the disease will take a long period of time.
In some cases, it is possible to use herbal medicines after consulting with your doctor. These include the fruits of hawthorn, St. John's wort, valerian, lemon balm and so on. These plants contribute to the normalization of the cardiovascular system, tonic NS. Stimulation of immunity, improving metabolic processes in the body, reducing the frequency of occurrence of attacks of the disease.
Failure to comply with the doctor's prescriptions leads to a deterioration in well-being, as well as to the development of dangerous disorders in the human body.
Forecast
Usually, the disease develops in childhood and disappears on its own as a person grows older. In severe cases, medical attention is required. Treatment of the disease takes a long time, a person is successfully cured with the right approach to the development of therapy tactics.
Prevention
For the purpose of prevention, it is recommended to undergo regular observations by a neurologist, timely diagnose and treat infections, endocrine and cardiovascular pathologies, and reduce the load on the nervous system. Also, a person needs to normalize his sleep and wakefulness regimen, nutrition, get rid of addictions, take vitamin complexes in the autumn and spring season. During an exacerbation of the disease, doctors recommend taking a course of physiotherapy.