Symptoms and Treatment of Neurological Disorders

Neurosurgery is a medical discipline concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of nervous system disorders. Neurosurgery is often referred to as brain surgery, however, it’s much more than just the brain. The medical specialty deals with all kinds of neurological disorders including brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerves, and extra-cranial cerebrovascular system.

Nervous system

The nervous system is a highly complex, specialized network inside human body that organizes, elucidates, and directs human interactions with the world outside. The nervous system is primarily responsible for functions like:

• Five senses of seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and feeling
• Besides regulating things like blood flow and blood pressure, nervous system is also responsible for voluntary and involuntary functions, such as movement, balance, and coordination.
• The ability to think and reason.

The nervous system is divided into the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system, or CNS) and the nerve cells that control voluntary and involuntary movements (peripheral nervous system, or PNS).

Neurosurgeons treat patients suffering from back and neck pain, spinal arthritis, herniated discs as well as a host of other disorders ranging from trigeminal neuralgia to head injury and Parkinson’s disease.

Neurosurgery treatment at AMRI Hospitals, Best Neurology Hospitals in Kolkata, has considered amongst the best in the world thanks to top-class neurosurgeons who are trained at the best medical schools and have wide experience in handling various kinds of neurosurgery in India. Choosing the best and widely experienced neurosurgeon ensures minimum complications after treatments and much less stress for the patient and the family.

Neurosurgeons in India usually deal with the surgical treatment of the following:
Back pain
Neck pain
Brain tumors
Brain aneurysms
Brain hemorrhage
Spine arthritis
Erniated spinal discs
Spinal stenosis
Epilepsy
Hydrocephalus
Spinal fractures
Head injuries
Carotid Artery Disease
Spinal cord injuries
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Acute and chronic pain
Tremors
Stroke
Artery blockages in the neck and brain
Pain caused by cancer
Parkinson’s disease

Causes Of Neurological Disorder

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The causes of neurological disorder may be quite diverse. Both the spinal cord and the brain are insulated by numerous membranes that can be vulnerable to force and pressure. This also includes peripheral nerves that are located deep under the skin. Neurological disorders can affect an entire neurological pathway or a single neuron. Even a small disturbance to a neuron’s structural pathway can result in dysfunction. As a result, neurological disorders can result from a number of causes, including:

• Lifestyle related issues
• Infections
• Genetics
• Nutrition related issues
• Physical injuries
• Environmental influences

Symptoms of Neurological Disorders

Symptoms of neurological disorders may be mild or severe depending upon which part of the nervous system is involved and what is the root cause of the problem. Nervous system disorders may happen slowly with gradual loss of function or it may be a sudden occurrence that becomes life-threatening.

Some of the symptoms of acute neurological problems and diseases include:

• Numbness, weakness, or problem in movement of a part or all of one side of the body
• Blurring, haziness, double vision, or loss of vision in one or both eyes.
• Speech issues like trouble talking, or trouble understanding or complete loss of speech.
• Severe headache.
• Dizziness, unsteadiness.
• Persistent confusion in understanding things or a change in behavior.
• Nausea.

All you need to know about Brain tumors and their treatment

Brain tumors are difficult to treat, with the survival rate becoming stubbornly low if not detected in due time. They can be fatal, and can significantly hamper the quality of a person’s life. The condition can inflict all age groups and races of men and women. Therefore, that is why brain tumor research and treatment is one of our top priorities, say neurosurgeons at Hospital, one of the best hospitals in Eastern India.

Brain tumor diagnosis and screening might take a mental as well as an emotion toll, but not all tumors are life-threatening. There are a number of questions that circle around brain tumors, and some of the most common are:

How do I know if I have a brain tumor?

A tumor is an abnormal growth of cells in your brain. The tumors can range from being noncancerous or what professionals term as ‘benign’ to cancerous. The outgrowth is not only restricted to the brain but other parts of the body such as the spinal cord (known as the secondary, or metastatic brain tumors).

Most brain tumors are diagnosed after the patient reports a sense of unsought weakness, numbness or sore and stiff muscles. Persisting headaches or any other changes can also be a symptom followed by short episodes of epilepsy in some cases.

How quickly does a brain tumor develop?

The growth of a brain tumor varies on the size, area affected, and the type of brain tumor (benign, malignant). Also, the growth of the tumor determines how intensely it would affect the working of your nervous system. It also has a tendency of continued growth which requires immediate treatment or removal.

What are the implications of being diagnosed with a brain tumor?

The brain is the epicenter of the functioning of your body and tumors can affect it substantially. There are three major areas of functioning affected by a tumor, such as – breathing (brain stem), muscle control and movement, sensory organs and cognitive abilities like memory, sight, emotions, etc. Doctor’s generally group brain tumors by grades such as – grade 1 (less severe) to grade IV (most severe). A higher grade would mean a more aggressive tumor.

What are the symptoms of a brain tumor?

• Sight and hearing inadequacies
• Body balance problems
• Changes in cognitive abilities (such as concentration, memory)
• Seizures, short episodes of epilepsy
• Nausea, weakness, and numbness
• Facial paralysis
• Severe headaches

What all treatment options do I have?

According to health experts at Hospital, there are various treatments available depending upon the severity of the brain tumor. The patient can be treated through surgery or focused radiation treatments which do require surgery. Chemotherapy is another approach to kill the tumor cells, however, it isn’t preferred as it kills the healthy brain cells. Minimally invasive, scarless surgery such as awake craniotomy is also an option, which requires great coordination between the patient and the doctor.  Hospital’s team of best neurologists offer specialized medical assistance while aiming patient’s optimal health and recovery at AMRI Hospitals, best neurology hospital in Kolkata

Observation

Sometimes the best treatment is observation. For example, benign, slow-growing tumors that are small and have few symptoms may be observed with routine MRI scans every year until their growth or symptoms necessitate surgery. Observation may be the best option for people who are older or with other health conditions.

Medication

Medications are used to control some of the common side effects of brain tumors.

Surgery

Surgery is the treatment of choice for brain tumors that can be reached without causing major injury to vital parts of the brain. A neurosurgeon performs a craniotomy to open the skull and remove the tumor. Partial removal can still relieve symptoms. Radiation or chemotherapy may be used on the remaining tumor cells.

Radiation

Radiation therapy uses controlled high-energy rays to treat brain tumors. Radiation damages the DNA inside cells, making them unable to divide and grow. The benefits of radiation are not immediate but occur with time. Aggressive tumors, whose cells divide rapidly, tend to respond quickly to radiation.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy drugs work by disrupting cell division. Over time, chemotherapy causes the abnormal cells to die and the tumor may shrink. This treatment can also damage normal cells, but they can repair themselves better than abnormal cells, say neurosurgeons at one of the best hospitals in Eastern India.

Recovery & prevention

1. Self-care: The primary care doctor and oncologist should discuss any home care needs with you and your family.
2. Rehabilitation: Brain tumors develop in parts of the brain that control movement, speech, vision, and thinking, rehabilitation may be a necessary part of recovery. Although the brain can sometimes heal itself after the trauma of treatment, it will take time and patience. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy may be helpful to improve or correct lost functions.

Since it is impossible to predict whether or when a particular tumor may recur, lifelong monitoring with MRI or CT scans is essential for people treated for a brain tumor, even a benign lesion. Follow-up scans may be performed every 3 to 6 months or annually, depending on the type of tumor you had.

Special birthday treat for 3-year-old on ventilation

KOLKATA: It was a surprise birthday party for little Saheli Tiwari, who turned three on Thursday. Only the ones who threw the party were an uncommon lot. They were the doctors and nurses at the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of AMRI Hospitals, Mukundapur, where the child has been admitted since August 24, 2017.

“Saheli has become a part of the PICU family. We could not have ignored her birthday,” said neurosurgeon Dr Sisir Das.

Saheli suffers from multiple neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes tumours to form on nerve tissues. Though her brain function has been normal, doctors have not been able to send the child home as she can’t breathe without ventilation support. Multiple tumours have compressed her nerves and muscles, including the respiratory ones. “Multiple tumours are arising from her spinal cord. We operated on her the very next day of her admission but could not remove all the tumours as it could have been fatal,” said Das, who operated on Saheli. She was put on ventilation right after the surgery. Now, the remaining tumours are getting bigger and she cannot breathe on her own. “She is completely dependent on ventilation support,” said Dr Soumen Meur, paediatric intensivist.

The doctors and nurses wanted to make it special on her birthday. The entry of the unit was decked with flowers and balloons. “She loves lipstick and bindi. So we put make-up on her and dressed her in new clothes,” said Sonia T, a nurse. The child broke into a smile when a cake was brought to her bed. She cut it with the help of a nurse and her mother fed her a slice. “In the West, patients like Saheli are put on ventilation at home. But the child’s parents cannot afford a system, so we cannot discharge her,” said Dr Bichitrabhanu Sarkar, paediatric intensivist.

Her father Santosh, a jute mill worker at Howrah’s Bauria, took her to six hospitals before coming to AMRI Mukundapur. “Everywhere, doctors said my child would die if they performed a surgery,” said Rinu, Saheli’s mother. AMRI will continue to support the child as long as her parents wished to. “Lack of home ventilation for kids with normal brain function is a concern,” said Prabhas Prasun Giri, PICU in-charge at Institute of Child Health.