The germinal matrix is a part of the brain that normally disappears as the fetal brain develops but during this process it is not unusual for changes in vessel volume to cause a vessel to burst. According to recent microscopic studies, the most common location for a cerebral hemorrhage is where the medullary veins drain to the terminal vein in the sub-ependymal region. It has been hypothesized that because pre-term babies dont have fully developed sympathetic nervous systems, they cannot react as well to low oxygen saturation levels caused by the cerebral hemorrhage. Although babies born at full-term are still susceptible to this, they are likely to respond better and thus, tend to have better outcomes in response to low-oxygen events. Ascending intrauterine infections
Recent research has found a connection between intrauterine infections and inflammation in the mother and an increased likelihood of perinatal brain damage in the fetus. This study suggested that intrauterine infections in the mother could affect glial cells and toll-like receptors (TLRs) which are important in moderating the inflammatory response in the fetal brain. When glial cells and TLRs are negatively affected they are not able to react to developing inflammation in the brain as well. The connection between ascending intrauterine infections and perinatal brain damage is a developing research theory but a more detailed explanation of the connection is not yet known. Signs and symptoms
Ulegyria was found in about 1/3 of patients with defects caused by circulatory disease in the perinatal period.
Ischemia causes anoxic cell depolarizations and it is this increase in membrane potential at the presynaptic cell that triggers the release of glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter.Glucose deprivation in the brain for any amount of time has the potential to pose serious consequences, and the amount of time the brain spends under these anoxic conditions is directly related to accumulation of irreversible damage to protein biosynthesis pathways. Protein synthesis all over the body is severely inhibited and essentially comes to a standstill while the brain is suffering from acute oxygen deprivation. Once oxygen sufficiently saturates the tissues again, protein biosynthesis returns to normal in non-vulnerable areas but remains at below normal levels in other areas. Insufficient protein synthesis in the brain is especially troubling in the fetal brain given the amount of growth and development that normally occurs. Areas particularly vulnerable to the damaging effects of hypoxic episodes include: the superior brainstem, the cerebellum, white matter and subcortical structures supplied by the branches of deep and superficial penetrating blood vessels. Vulnerable areas where protein synthesis is interrupted usually indicate impending cell death in neurons. When oxygen levels return, oxygen radicals, nitric oxide and an imbalance of neurotransmitters cause further damage and lead to cellular death through apoptosis. Neuron cell death is responsible for gliosis and results in the mushroom appearance of areas and is characteristic of ulegyria. Cerebral hemorrhage
A cerebral hemorrhage is the result of immature blood vessels of a brain lesion bursting.