Mental abnormalities are not entirely psychological problems. Be alert to the distress signals sent by your body organs!

At the Department of Critical Care Medicine for Brain Diseases of the Second People's Hospital of Hunan Province (Provincial Brain Hospital) , 66-year-old Ms. Li was rushed to the hospital due to confusion and convulsions. Chief Physician Zhou Gaoya, who received the patient, found that her abnormal mental symptoms were caused by uremic encephalopathy caused by the uremic stage of chronic renal failure. This case reveals an important medical warning: behind mental disorders, there may be a distress signal sent by the body's organs.

1. Organic mental disorders: neglected disease signal towers

Organic mental disorder refers to abnormal mental behavior caused directly by brain disease or physical disease. Unlike simple psychological and mental illness, its occurrence is often accompanied by serious disorders of body organ function. Common causes include:

Metabolic diseases (such as uremia, hepatic encephalopathy);

Cerebrovascular disease (stroke, brain tumor);

Endocrine disorders (thyroid storm, diabetic ketoacidosis);

Toxic encephalopathy (alcohol, drug intoxication).

Ms. Li's case is a typical case of organic mental disorder caused by metabolic diseases. When the kidney, the "purification factory", stops working, toxins in the body such as creatinine and urea nitrogen invade the brain nerve cells like sewage, and eventually develop into uremic encephalopathy.

2. Uremic encephalopathy: the silent killer of the brain

This neurological complication caused by chronic renal failure often presents as progressive mental abnormalities:

Early warning signs: lack of concentration and memory loss (e.g. frequently forgetting to turn off the gas);

Mid-term crisis: day and night reversal, hallucinations and delusions (such as seeing non-existent things out of thin air);

Terminal stage: confusion, convulsions and coma.

What is even more dangerous is that uremia patients often have coagulation disorders and vascular diseases. Ms. Li's sudden intracranial hematoma was caused by toxins eroding the blood vessel wall, coupled with spontaneous cerebral hemorrhage caused by abnormal platelet function. This "time bomb in the brain" can endanger life within a few hours.

3. Accurate identification: These symptoms require immediate medical attention

It is important to consider the possibility of an organic mental disorder when:

1. Sudden mental abnormalities in middle-aged and elderly people with no history of mental illness

2. Accompanied by physical symptoms such as fever, edema, and jaundice

3. A sharp decline in cognitive function in a short period of time

4. Combined with chronic liver and kidney diseases, diabetes and other underlying diseases

4. Critical Care Medicine for Brain Diseases: The Last Line of Defense for Neurological Health

The Department of Critical Care Medicine of Brain Diseases of Hunan Second People's Hospital (Provincial Brain Hospital), as a diagnosis and treatment center for critical and severe neurological diseases, developed a personalized treatment plan for the patient:

Multimodal monitoring: using advanced technologies such as intracranial pressure monitoring, EEG monitoring, and cerebral blood flow monitoring to capture changes in brain function in real time

Multidisciplinary collaboration: Jointly with nephrology, psychiatry, neurology and surgery to develop individualized dialysis plans and surgical treatments, and simultaneously treat metabolic disorders and repair brain damage

Neurorepair system: Combined with blood purification, it effectively removes harmful substances and inflammatory mediators from the blood and reduces the damage response of the nervous system. At the same time, it accurately removes intracranial hematomas, quickly relieves pressure on brain tissue, improves local blood circulation, and creates favorable conditions for the recovery of neurological function.

Chief Physician Zhou Gaoya reminded: "For sudden mental symptoms, do not simply attribute them to 'mental illness'. We have treated brain tumors disguised as depression, hepatic encephalopathy manifested as mania, and various encephalitis manifested as agitation. Timely investigation of organic causes can often seize the golden opportunity for treatment."

Health revelation

Regular annual physical examinations should focus on renal function (creatinine, urea nitrogen), electrolytes and other indicators. Patients with chronic kidney disease should strictly control blood pressure and undergo regular dialysis. When cognitive function changes occur, it is recommended to prioritize head CT scans and blood biochemistry tests. Remember: the brain is the body's most honest "alarm", and any abnormal mental manifestations are warning signals from life.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Guo Shudong, Ouyang Haiyan, Department of Critical Care Medicine for Brain Diseases, Hunan Second People's Hospital (Provincial Brain Hospital)

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(Edited by Wx)