Rheoencephalography of cerebral vessels: the essence of the method, indications, contraindications

Due to its functional characteristics, the brain needs oxygen and nutrients to a much greater extent than many other organs of the human body. Provides delivery of their developed vascular system, "malfunctioning" in which - the narrowing of the vessel, obturation (blockage) it and others - cause a disruption of the work of a particular area of ​​the brain and lead to the development of various unpleasant, and sometimes extremely dangerous, symptoms. To assess the state of the cerebral blood flow, to reveal the localization of its disorders and help the diagnostic method called "rheoencephalography or REG. About what the essence of this method, about the existing indications and contraindications, as well as the preparation and technique of its conduct, will be discussed in our article.

Rheoencephalography: the essence of the method

REG is a noninvasive method of functional diagnostics. With the help of it, the resistance of the head tissues to the electric current is measured. Everyone knows that blood is an electrolyte. When the brain vessel is filled with blood, the values ​​of the electrical resistance of the tissues decrease, which is what the device registers. Then, based on the rate of change in resistance, conclusions are drawn about the rate of blood flow in a vessel, and other indicators are also evaluated.

Why conduct REG

Since the results of rheoencephalography describe only the functional state of the brain vessels, it is not the final method of diagnosis - on the basis of the results of this method alone it is impossible to expose diagnosis. However, it allows to reveal the fact of cerebral circulation disturbance in this or that area of ​​the brain and to concentrate the doctor on the further investigation of it.

The REG provides data on the following blood flow parameters:

• the tone of the vessels;
• the degree of blood filling of this or that part of the brain;
• blood flow velocity;
• blood viscosity;
• collateral circulation and others.

Indications

Carrying out this method of diagnosis is indicated for all conditions accompanied by symptoms of cerebral circulation disorders. Typically, this is:

• frequent headaches and dizziness;
• pre-syncope and fainting;
• noise in ears;
• hearing and vision impairment;
• sleep disorders;
• memory impairment;
• impaired ability to learn;
• Meteosensitivity (change in health due to weather change);
• craniocerebral trauma (concussions, bruises of the brain);
• acute disorders of cerebral circulation (strokes) in the anamnesis;
• encephalopathy;
• arterial hypertension;
• arterial hypotension;
• atherosclerosis of cerebral vessels;
• cardiopsychoneurosis;
• osteochondrosis of the cervical spine;
• spondylitis;
• vertebral artery syndrome;
• migraine;
• diabetes mellitus with suspected complications, diabetic microangiopathy;
• cerebral artery disease in close relatives;
• evaluation of the effectiveness of previously conducted drug or non-drug treatment.

Are there any contraindications?

Rheoencephalography is an absolutely safe diagnostic method that is approved for use in almost all categories of patients. Research should not be carried out if:

• the patient has skin defects (wounds) in the area to which electrodes should be applied;
• the patient suffers from a bacterial, fungal or parasitic disease of the scalp and hair.

Conducting REG is possible only if the patient agrees to the examination, so refusing the patient from it is also a contraindication.

Do I need to prepare for the study?

Special preparation before carrying out reoencephalography is not required.

To get the most accurate data, on the eve of the study, the subject should avoid stress, and on the night before him - have a good night's sleep. Also, do not smoke, drink strong coffee or black tea, since these actions affect the nervous system, vascular tone and blood pressure, and the results of the study will be distorted.

In some cases, the doctor may recommend that the patient cancel before the time of diagnosis any drugs that affect the tone of the vessels. However, this only applies to drugs of course use - if a person takes such drugs in a constant regime, then the diagnosis should be carried out against the background of the usual therapy for him.

When you come to the examination, do not immediately go to the diagnosis room. It is worth 15 minutes to rest in a well-ventilated, but not stuffy room, and only then go to the REG.

Owners (and owners) of long hair will have to collect them in a bundle so that they do not interfere with the research.

The procedure for carrying out rheoencephalography

The research is carried out by means of a 2-6-channel rheograph (the more channels are provided in the apparatus, the greater the area of ​​the brain will be covered by the diagnostic procedure). As a rule, the average medical staff conducts the diagnostics, and the doctor decides directly on the interpretation of the data obtained.

During the study, the patient is in a comfortable position, sitting on a chair or lying on a soft couch, relaxed, with closed eyes. The specialist applies electrodes to the head with gel or contact paste, fixing them with an elastic band (it runs along the head circumference: above the eyebrows, ears and the back of the head). During the diagnosis, these electrodes send electrical signals to the brain, and on the computer monitor at this time are displayed the above indices of the state of the blood vessels and blood flow in them (in some devices, the data do not enter the computer, but are output to paper tape).

The area of ​​application of electrodes depends on which part of the brain is to be diagnosed:

• when examining the external carotid artery, the electrodes should be fixed above the eyebrows outside and in front of the external auditory meatus (in other words, in front of the ear);
• when examining the internal carotid artery - on the region of the nose bridge and the mastoid process (behind the ear);
• in the study of the pool of vertebral arteries - on the mastoid process and occipital mounds, and in this case it is recommended to take an electrocardiogram simultaneously with carrying out the REG.

When the bulk of the research is completed, if the doctor deems it necessary, he can conduct one or more functional tests. The most frequent samples are taking a nitroglycerin pill under the tongue (contraindicated in glaucoma, hypotension and intolerance this drug), a change in the position of the whole body, or just the turns and inclinations of the head (usually used for diagnosis syndrome of the vertebral artery), hyperventilation (deep breathing) for several minutes, holding the breath, any physical load and others. After the test, repeat the recording of the REG and evaluate the changes on it.

The duration of the study takes from 10 minutes to half an hour. During it, the patient does not experience any special sensations, he does not hurt (the only headache pain can occur after a functional test with nitroglycerin, as a side effect of this preparation).

Decoding of REG

To correctly interpret the data obtained during the REG, the doctor needs to know the exact age of the patient - this is logical, because the tone of the vessels and the nature blood flow in patients of young, middle and elderly / senile age are different (that there is a pathology for the young, is the norm or the norm option for the elderly person).

The rheoencephalogram has a wavy appearance, each segment of this wave having its own name:

• the ascending part of it is an anacrotic;
• descending - cataract;
• between them - an incision (actually, the bend itself - the transition of the ascending part to the descending one), immediately after which a small dicrotic tooth is determined.

Deciphering REG, the doctor estimates such characteristics:

• how regular are the waves;
• how do they look like an anacrotic and a calcareous;
• the nature of the curvature of the top of the wave;
• the location of the incisors and the dicrotic tooth, the depth of the latter;
• the presence and appearance of additional waves.

Concluding the article, I want to note that although the REG is not an independent method of diagnosis,
which allows to verify a cardiological or neurological diagnosis, however, it was carried out In a timely manner, with the first symptoms, it helps to detect the presence of vascular pathology at an early, early stage disease. Conducted additional examination and adequate treatment will lead the patient to an early recovery and will get rid of complications that might occur if the diagnosis is not made in time.

And, although to date, some experts are very skeptical about this method diagnosis, nevertheless, it has a place to be and is still widely used in many medical institutions.