[Morphofunctional features of the cerebral cortex in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease concurrent with ischemic...

To determine the structural changes in the cerebral cortex tissues, which are characteristic of the severe course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and ischemic cerebral stroke (ICS).

The autopsy material of the microcirculatory bed of the cerebral cortex from 18 people aged 48-64 years who had died from COPD, ICS, and a concurrence of these conditions underwent histological examination and morphometric analysis.

The state of the brain from the persons who died from ICS was characterized by a decline in the total number of neurons and glial elements, by structural and regional blood flow changes with obvious venous hyperemia, stasis, and red blood cell aggregation in the vessels. There was pericellular and perivascular edema in the perifocal area of the brain from people who died from COPD, as well as morphological signs of cerebral hemodynamic disorders. The brain structural features in ICS concurrent with COPD included a double decrease in the numerical density of capillaries, their hyperemia, perivascular edema, and venous plethora, a substantial change in the diameter of non-muscular venules, parenchymal atrophy, and stromal sclerosis, indicating the presence of a chronic process.

Patients with ICS in the presence of COPD versus those who died from the isolated variants of these conditions were recorded to have an obvious decrease in the numerical density of capillaries, their hyperemia, and a pronounced change in the structure of the cerebral vein wall, which is a consequence of multisystem processes associated with COPD.