Kui ohtlik on minestamine ja miks see esineb? Arst on andnud 6 võimalikku põhjust

cardiologist, general practitioner at LabQuest and Q-Clinica medical company

“Dizziness, pale face – a person loses consciousness and falls to the floor. This is a classic case of fainting. In itself, this phenomenon is temporary and relatively harmless, but its cause can be a simple drop in pressure, and a serious pathology. And if the situation is repeated constantly, you can not delay going to a specialist. Let’s find out why this happens.

What is syncope

Syncope, or syncope – a short-term loss of consciousness caused by a violation of blood supply to the brain.

The mechanism of action is simple – the brain simply “turns off” most of the energy-consuming functions of the body, which are not needed to maintain vital activity: blood supply and respiration. And it is logical – when there are problems with energy, it should be directed to something really important.

The logic of the brain’s actions can be compared to power outages in a private home. When you don’t know how long it will take to fix an accident, it’s better to save energy and save it for heating, water supply and powering the refrigerator – you can do without TV, robot vacuum cleaner, smart speaker and other gadgets.

Causes of fainting

Orthostatic hypotension

Since fainting is a violation of the blood supply to the brain, provoke loss of consciousness can any influencing factor. There are indeed many reasons, and one of the most famous is orthostatic hypotension, better known as “stood up sharply and my eyes went dark”.

The heart does not have time to react to the change in body position and provide normal blood flow to the brain. This often occurs in adolescents – at this age, the development of the vascular system may lag behind the needs of the growing body.

Redistribution of blood

In addition, redistribution of blood can provoke fainting. For this reason, athletes sometimes lose consciousness – with strong physical exertion, blood flow to the muscles increases, and the brain may not receive oxygen due to a decrease in blood pressure.

In some cases, this can happen after eating – blood rushes to the organs of the gastrointestinal tract for digestion, sometimes to the detriment of the brain. By the way, this is one of the reasons why we sometimes feel like sleeping after a heavy meal.

Overheating

Overheating is another reason why people can faint during a heat wave. In such cases, it is not a specific factor that plays a major role, but a combination of factors. For example, lack of water makes the blood thicker and more viscous, and it becomes harder for the heart to pump it through the body. At the same time, increased blood flow is directed to the skin – the vessels expand in an attempt to increase heat dissipation through it.

And together with sweat a person loses electrolytes – potassium and sodium, which are necessary for proper electrical activity of the heart. In general, the loss of fluid for various reasons – quite an independent factor that can lead to fainting.

Medication causes of fainting

If we talk about medication causes of fainting, the general essence does not change – to provoke it is potentially capable of any drug that affects the tone of blood vessels, narrows or dilates them.

In the first case, everything is clear – vasoconstriction prevents the flow of blood. With this phenomenon due to the action of nicotine is well known to inveterate smokers. But expansion, paradoxically, can also lead to a lack of blood supply – the heart needs to pump the same volume of blood through the dilated vessels in the same time, and it may not have time to adapt to the new mode of operation.

Antidepressants and phenothiazine-derived neuroleptics, as well as vasodilators and diuretics, are particularly common causes of syncope.

Psychoemotional aspects

Psychoemotional aspects are another common cause of fainting. Often in movies, you can see a character fainting after hearing bad news. This can happen in reality as well – the hormones released during stress can cause an increase in heart rate and vasoconstriction, resulting in decreased blood flow to the brain and eventually fainting.

It’s not just bad news that can be a source of stress – pain, a phobia, and any strong emotion, including elation and excitement, can trigger a reaction.

As a rule, fainting does not signal the presence of pathology, if it is a one-time event – everyone can once overexcited, not calculate their strength in the gym or forget about adequate fluid intake during the heat.

But in some cases, fainting is a constant companion of diseases. Given their nature, loss of consciousness is more often observed in people with cardiovascular disease.

Diabetes

Also from fainting can suffer from diabetics – a decrease in blood glucose levels does not allow normal energy supply to the brain, so it goes into “emergency mode” according to the mechanism described above. Epileptics are also unlucky, but they have a difference – the cause of fainting is a disturbance in the electrical activity of the brain, not a lack of blood supply.

In addition, constant fainting can be a symptom of a dangerous pathology, the presence of which a person did not guess. All that the patient needs to do is to describe in as much detail as possible the symptoms that preceded the fainting and follow the doctor’s instructions exactly.

Regular fainting is an urgent reason to make an appointment with a doctor. Given the myriad reasons for fainting, only a specialist can reliably identify the disorder that prevents the brain from receiving adequate blood supply.

First aid in case of fainting

To protect yourself from fainting is not always possible, since loss of consciousness develops suddenly. However, it is possible to avoid injuries in case of a fall, namely – to find a point of support by taking a safe position. You should also avoid stuffy rooms, and at the first symptoms of dizziness or weakness, seek help and try to breathe more slowly.

Pay attention to these signs:

• rapid heartbeat;
• dizziness;
• darkening of the eyes;
• nausea;
• flickering “flies” in front of the eyes;
• sweating or coldness of the extremities.

If you see that a person has lost consciousness, immediately call an ambulance. Before the ambulance arrives, the first thing to do is to lay the victim on a flat surface and elevate his legs to ensure blood flow to the brain.