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Clinical features

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

The effects develop gradually as bleeding is venous in origin and at low pressure.

General features include:

  • fluctuating conscious level:
    • there may be a history of gradual onset of headaches, memory loss, personality change, dementia, confusion and drowsiness
    • symptoms vary from day to day with intervening lucid periods
  • focal neurological signs - often, hemiparesis of the side ipsilateral to the lesion - a "false" localising sign
  • aphasia - if the lesion is on the left side

Acute form:

  • symptoms follow immediately from an identifiable injury

Chronic form:

  • latent period of weeks or months before symptoms apparent
  • greater extent of cerebral distortion and herniation than acute form as the brain can initially accommodate the developing mass lesion

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