A Basic Study on Cerebral Apoplexy

Abstract

Despite many epidemiological and pathological studies on the etiology of cerebral apoplexy, the relationship between findings of ocular fundi and cerebral apoplexy has still remained obscure. The author has studied on the significance of findings of ocular fundi, especially pathologic changes of the retinal artery, in predicting cerebral apoplexy. In the present study pathologic findings of the branches of the intracerebral artery, and those of retinal arteries were correlated with aging process and blood pressure. One hundred and one male and one hundred and thirty eight female cases between ages of 45 days to 94 years autopsied at the branch hospital of the University of Tokyo and at Yokufukai Hospital were randomly employed for the present study.
The retinal arteries within 7 or 8 disc diameter, small intracerebral arteries and arterioles in the area of basal ganglia were histologically and histometrically studied. Hypertrophy, atheromatous degeneration, and calcification in the intima, as well as thickness, fibrosis or hyalinization, calcification and angionecrosis in the media were described.
Results and conclusions were as follows;
1) Hypertrophy in the media of retinal arteries probably developed as the result of hypertension.
2) Fibrosis in the media of the retinal arteries was apparently due to aging and enhanced by hypertension.
3) Hypertrophy in the intima of branches of the intracerebral artery was mainly due to aging, but enhanced by hypertension.
4) Angionecrosis of branches of the intracerebral artery was mainly due to aging, and enhanced by hypertension, but other factors such as aging and some renal factors might also be concerned with the development of angionecosis of these arteries.