Cushing reflex (also referred to as the vasopressor response, the Cushing effect, the Cushing reaction, the Cushing phenomenon, the Cushing response, or Cushings Law) is a physiological nervous system response to increased intracranial pressure (ICP) that results in Cushings triad of increased blood pressure, irregular breathing, and bradycardia. It is usually seen in the terminal stages of acute head injury and may indicate imminent brain herniation. It can also be seen after the intravenous administration of epinephrine and similar drugs. It was first described in detail by American neurosurgeon Harvey Cushing in 1901. Definition
The Cushing reflex classically presents as an increase in systolic and pulse pressure, reduction of the heart rate (bradycardia), and irregular respiration. It is caused by increased pressure inside the skull. These symptoms can be indicative of insufficient blood flow to the brain (ischemia) as well as compression of arterioles.In response to rising intracranial pressure (ICP), respiratory cycles change in regularity and rate. Different patterns indicate a different location of the brain where the injury occurred. The increase in ventilation is exhibited as an increase in rate rather than depth of ventilation, so the Cushing reflex is often associated with slow, irregular breathing. As a result of the now defective regulation of heart rate and blood pressure, the physiologic response is decreased blood flow peripherally, which can present as Mayer waves. These are simply pathologic waves seen in HR tracings (i.e., arterial lines, electrocardiograph (ECG, etc. ), which reflect decreased intravascular blood flow.
Each papule corresponds to the penetration site of a single parasite. After locating a bird, the parasite penetrates through the skin (usually the feet), dropping the forked tail in the process. Inside the circulatory system, the immature worms (schistosomula) develop into mature male and female worms, mate and migrate through the hosts circulatory system (or nervous system in case of T. regenti) to the final location (veins feeding the gastrointestinal tract) within the host body. There they lay eggs in the small veins in the intestinal mucosa from which they make their way into the lumen of the gut, and are dumped into the water when the bird defecates. One European species, Trichobilharzia regenti, instead infects the bird hosts nasal tissues and larvae hatch from the eggs directly in the tissue during drinking/feeding of the infected birds. Risk factors
Humans usually become infected after swimming in slow-moving rivers, lakes or ponds. Some laboratory evidence indicates snails shed cercariae most intensely in the morning and on sunny days, and exposure to water in these conditions may therefore increase risk. Duration of swimming is correlated with increased risk of infection in Europe and North America, and shallow inshore waters may harbour higher densities of cercariae than open waters offshore. Onshore winds are thought to cause cercariae to accumulate along shorelines.