Faint

Causes and symptoms of fainting

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What's fainting?

Syncope – loss of consciousness that occurs suddenly due to metabolic disorders in the brain. Similar slowing of metabolism due to a decrease of cerebral blood flow and has nothing to do with epilepsy. When providing first aid to the victim and, if necessary, medical assistance should be distinguished simple syncope from an epileptic seizure.

Not always fainting is a consequence of the serious diseases that threaten human life.

Causes of syncope

Fainting may be a result of the fall in blood pressure if the human body is not able to quickly adapt to changes in blood flow. So, in some diseases, accompanied by disturbance of heart rhythm, the heart can not always cope with the sharply increased load at lower pressure and are not able to quickly increase the ejection of blood. In this case, the person will feel discomfort with the growth needs of cells for oxygen. This type of syncope triggered by physical activity and is called faint effort (voltage). His reason was that the vessels of the muscles, remaining elevated for some time after the cessation of exercise, contain enough blood needed to remove metabolic products from the muscles. At the same time, pulse rate drops and, consequently, the volume of blood ejected by the heart with each beat falls. Thus, blood pressure decreases, and becomes a cause of syncope.

Fainting can be triggered by a sharp decrease in the volume of circulating blood in case of bleeding or due to dehydration (diarrhea, profuse sweating, copious urination, and some diseases).

The cause of fainting can become nerve impulses that act on the compensatory mechanisms and are caused by different stomach pain or strong emotions – e.g., fear of blood.

Possible fainting during certain physiological or pathological processes in the body, such as coughing, swallowing or urination. The cause of syncope when coughing and urinating can be a voltage which causes the decrease of blood volume returning to the heart. In some diseases of the esophagus fainting may occur upon ingestion of food.

Anemia, a decrease in the level of sugar or carbon dioxide in the blood simultaneously with the hyperventilating can also cause fainting. Shortness of breath can be caused by anxiety.

Quite rarely, mostly in the elderly, stroke may appear faint with a sharp decrease of blood flow in a certain area of the brain.

The symptoms of fainting

Before fainting the person often feels a bout of nausea, vomits, there is a veil before the eyes, floaters, ringing in my ears. The harbingers of syncope include sudden weakness, in some cases, yawning, patients can podkashivatsya feet and to be a feeling of approaching syncope. The typical symptoms of fainting, cold sweat, pale skin, some people may remain a little blush. After loss of consciousness skin becomes ashy-gray, pulse is weak filling, heart rate either increases or falls, low muscle tone, reflexes are absent or are weak. Pupils during fainting dilate, react slowly to light. The symptoms of fainting continues, on average 1-2 seconds. Long swoon more than five minutes – can begin convulsions or involuntary urination occur.

Treatment of syncope

Treatment of syncope involves treatment of the underlying disease and the relief of fainting itself. The person who has lost consciousness, it is important to ensure the blood flow to the brain. The patient is placed on his back, turning his head to the side, and raise his feet, or seated, dropping the head between your legs. On the patient's face, you can splash cold water, to free it from tight clothes, in a stuffy room should open the Windows. To improve the tone of blood vessels and raising of blood pressure level medicines: caffeine, ammonia.