1/11. Unmasking complicated atherosclerotic plaques on carotid magnetic resonance angiography: a report of three cases.In stenotic lesions of the extracranial carotid arteries, the presence of intraplaque hemorrhage or thrombosed ulceration is considered to pose an additional risk. Although contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) is a powerful means for looking at the vascular lumen, it provides little information on the vessel wall, particularly when mask subtraction methods are used. We report three cases in which the maximal intensity projections obtained from gadolinium-enhanced MRA source images showed only internal carotid artery stenoses, whereas source images revealed a focal increased T1 signal in the wall of the internal carotid artery, representing either intraplaque hemorrhage or thrombosed ulceration. Hence, the physicians interpreting an MRA in an acute stroke patient should not limit themselves to the synthetic maximal intensity projections but should also always review the source partitions, which can contain information related to an acute intraplaque accident.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/11. Dissections of the cervicocerebral arteries.We present four cases of cerebral ischemia secondary to dissections of cervicocerebal arteries. The majority of patients presented with transient ischemic attacks and strokes, although one patient presented with headache and focal seizure. In addition to history and physical examination, the diagnostic evaluation of these patients included computed tomography scan, carotid duplex studies, angiogram, and, in some cases, magnetic resonance imaging studies. Initially, the patients were anticoagulated with heparin and then with warfarin for a period of six to eight weeks. The emergency physician must consider such dissections in younger patients with sudden neurologic deficits and no or few risk factors for cerebrovascular disease. In our experience, these are not rare syndromes; with proper workup, prompt diagnosis, and therapy, the prognosis is usually excellent.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/11. Delayed visual loss due to trauma of the internal carotid artery.The group of six patients in this study experienced delayed visual loss following head trauma. Visual loss occurred from 1 day to 13 years after the initial injury. All patients suffered indirect trauma to the internal carotid artery resulting in formation of either an aneurysm or pseudoaneurysm or a carotid-cavernous fistula. review of the radiologic and clinical findings was performed in six patients. The diagnosis was established by computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and angiography. All patients had follow-up clinical evaluation and imaging studies. Treatment by neurosurgical or interventional neuroradiologic procedures resulted in significant visual improvement in five patients. Different pathophysiologic mechanisms could be correlated with the delayed visual loss produced by the two types of lesions. The pathologic changes associated with the aneurysms/pseudoaneurysms included direct compression of optic nerves and/or chiasm and intracranial hematoma. A carotid-cavernous fistula caused delayed visual loss by either hematoma at the orbital apex or compression of the chiasm and/or optic nerves by saccular dilatation of the cavernous sinus. The delayed onset of decreased vision following head trauma should alert the physician to the possibility of a traumatic aneurysm/pseudoaneurysm or a carotid-cavernous fistula. Different neuro-ophthalmologic symptoms can usually be correlated with the pathologic changes demonstrated by neuroimaging procedures.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/11. Delayed hemorrhage from an anomalous carotid artery following tracheostomy.A report is presented in which a patient's unusual aortic arch anomaly ruptured following tracheostomy. Appreciation of the high incidence of such anomalies may prepare the physician to avoid injury during tracheostomy or successfully manage late hemorrhage when it occurs.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/11. Carotid hemorrhage: a complication of peritonsillar abscess.Carotid hemorrhage secondary to peritonsillar abscess occurs infrequently today because of the effectiveness of antibiotic therapy. When it does occur, however, emergency physicians unfamiliar with such a complication may have difficulty making its diagnosis and instituting appropriate therapy. Prevention is the easiest way to treat septic erosion. Abscesses are treated best with penicillin or, in the allergic patient, clindamycin followed by incision and drainage. Once the abscess has eroded into the carotid artery, it usually must be tied off to control the subsequent massive bleeding.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/11. Treatment of impending carotid rupture with detachable balloon embolization.Acute carotid artery rupture is frequently heralded by prodromal arterial bleeding. This warning signal provides the physician with a brief interval in which to hemodynamically stabilize a patient, electively occlude the carotid, and consequently improve the patient's chance of survival. For three years, we have employed an initial nonoperative approach to patients with impending carotid rupture. A trial of endovascular balloon occlusion followed by detachable balloon embolization of the carotid artery has been utilized. patients unable to tolerate temporary occlusion underwent a vascular bypass procedure followed by embolization. Six patients have undergone this approach, and all had permanent cessation of bleeding. None died as a result of the procedures. One patient developed permanent neurologic deficits. Balloon embolization offers improved results over elective ligation and should be considered as an alternative treatment for patients in this dire predicament.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/11. Anterior cervical pain syndromes.The paucity of clinical findings in patients with glossopharyngeal neuralgia, superior laryngeal neuralgia, styloid process syndrome, hyoid syndrome, or carotidynia presents an enigma to the patient and the physician. Manifest symptoms appear extraneous or incongruous unless the essential element is identified. Common to all these syndromes is the radiation of pain over the neck and face, starting from the anterior cervical area of the neck. Case histories of seven patients are presented. The rationale of underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms is discussed and supported by relevant recent basic pain research, and conceptual speculations are presented.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/11. Cerebral embolism in cancer patients.Sudden neurological deterioration suggesting embolism in a patient with a history of cancer should alert the physician to the possibility of a non-metastatic, and therefore potentially reversible, cause of cerebral embolism before cerebral metastasis is implicated. During a four year period, we have observed eight cases of acute cerebral embolism among 3000 cancer patients seen in a department of medical oncology. Five patients had features post mortem of non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis, and in one, the diagnosis had been made antemortem, but treatment with heparin did not prevent further emboli. Two patients had radiation related carotid vascular disease, and one patient post lymphangiographic embolism. The literature reporting these uncommon causes of cerebral embolism is reviewed. Post-lymphangiographic embolism carries a uniformly good prognosis. In selected cases of post-irradiation cerebral embolism, surgical intervention may prevent a neurological catastrophe. Non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis and mucin embolism are of uncertain aetiology and natural history; long-term survival is uncommon, and treatment does not appear to influence the clinical course or outcome.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/11. Nontraumatic intracranial internal carotid artery dissection: a case report.The case presented offers a demonstration of a rare yet devastating condition that may go unrecognized and incompletely worked up by the emergency physician. Internal carotid artery dissection is seen most often in previously healthy, young patients and thus all efforts toward diagnosing this condition and providing proper stabilization must be made. Unfortunately, little advancement in the therapeutic progress of this frequently fatal condition has been made over the past decades. To date, both medical management and surgical techniques have been utilized with variable success. This case should serve to remind physicians evaluating young patients with stroke symptoms or other neurological findings that a negative head CT scan may not be the last test necessary for the definitive diagnosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/11. The ophthalmology of intracranial vascular abnormalities.PURPOSE: To provide a practical review of the ophthalmologic manifestations of intracranial vascular abnormalities. methods: We reviewed ocular manifestations of the most common intracranial vascular abnormalities: intracranial aneurysms, carotid-cavernous fistulas, arteriovenous malformations, and cavernous malformations. RESULTS: Unruptured aneurysms can compress the third cranial nerve and the anterior visual pathways. Ruptured aneurysms and subarachnoid hemorrhage can result in Terson syndrome and papilledema. Direct and indirect carotid-cavernous fistulas most commonly cause the classic triad of proptosis, conjunctival chemosis, and cranial bruit but can masquerade as chronic conjunctivitis. arteriovenous malformations, with or without hemorrhage, may compress portions of the retrochiasmal pathways, causing visual field loss. Cavernous malformations, when in the brainstem, commonly cause abnormalities of supranuclear, nuclear, and fascicular ocular motility. CONCLUSIONS: The ophthalmologist may be the first physician to encounter clinical manifestations of intracranial vascular abnormalities that may herald devastating neurologic complications. Prompt diagnosis facilitates appropriate management and therapy.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = physician (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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