AP'OPLEXY (Gk. ciaoirXnEta, apoplexia, front dir6, away + TX1jo-o-av, pl('sein, to strike). A term applied to an engorgement. of blood, with or without extravasation, in or upon any organ, as the brain (cerebral apoplexy), the spinal cord or lungs (pulmonary apoplexy). As popularly used. the term denotes vaguely a condition aris ing from some disturbance of the brain cir culation. In medicine three distinct a ffec t ions of the brain circulation are under stood : embolism. cerebral thrombo sis, and cerebral hemorrhage. These differ in their cause and somewhat in their symptoms. In cerebral embolism there is a sudden blocking up of one of the blood vessels of the brain by some foreign body in the circulating blood. Such foreign bodies frequently come from dis eases of the joints or pleurae, or sometimes front the placenta in pregnant women; but more often from the valves of the heart, which in a number of septic diseases, as rheumatism, typhoid. gon orrhea. etc., have minute growths upon them. These become detached, and are swept into the circulation. and may block up a brain artery.
The symptoms come on acutely, may occur in the young or old. and may he slight, if a small vessel is blocked, or severe if the vessel is large. There may be sudden dizziness and weakness. going on to -light convulsive movements of one side of the body and loss of consciousness. This is accompanied by deep, noisy breathing. a slow ing of the pulse, and perhaps a slight rise in temperature. The person may soon recover. usu ally with some weakness in some part of the body. or with a slight paralysis of some of the muscles of the leg. arm, or face. At times the whole of one side of the body may remain para lyzed.
Cerebral thrombosis is due to a disease of the blood vessels themselves. during which blood clots may form in them, and thu- cut off a por tion of the brain substance front its normal sup ply of blood. Syphilis is the chief cause. espe cially in most eases of apoplexy under forty years of age. The symptoms are apt to come on more gradually. Following a week of headache. dizzi ness, and nausea. may occur peculiar sensations of prickling in the fingers: convulsive move ment= in some of the muscles, and twitching,s or gradually increasing• lameness. or loss of muscu lar strength. At the time of attack the symp toms resemble those of emboli-m.
Cerebral hemorrhage is the most important cause of apoplexy. It occurs from the rupture of a blood vessel in the brain substance, and the severity of the symptoms depends partly on the amount of the hemorrhage. largely on the part of the brain involved. Hemorrhage is more apt to occur in the aged. and it is a frequent cause of death in those over sixty of age. The symp toms may be sudden and terminate in death, or there may be several attacks of giddiness or col lapse, with tingling or of the extremi ties. loss of speech. etc. Patients may have sev eral attacks and yet recover, with some persist ing paralysis of one side of the body or of one arm or one leg. Little can be done before a physician conies. Mustard baths to the feet and the application of heat to the extremities may help in some eases. Persons with the "apoplec tic habit" should take special care not to become mentally disturbed.