Acute ischemic stroke in a trauma cohort: Incidence and diagnostic challenges.

INTRODUCTION: Diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke is critical for acute intervention. Its diagnosis may be obscured in trauma patients due to confounding injuries. We report its incidence in trauma patients following their presentation at our institution. METHODS: Electronic charts of all acute trauma patients presenting to a designated level 1 trauma center emergency department between September 2012-November 2015 were screened and included in the study if they had a discharge diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke. Patient data were reviewed to identify the presence of neurologic deficit on initial triage, imaging type obtained (intracranial or extracranial) and time to diagnosis of stroke. RESULTS: Of 192 trauma patients screened, 11 were found to have acute ischemic stroke (5.7%). Patients were generally young (median age, 49 years) and predominantly males (n = 8). Presentation after vehicular crash was most frequent (n = 8 or 73%). Patients had predominantly skeletal injuries (n = 8 or 73%). Initial workup involved vascular imaging below the neck (n = 9), while only one had intracranial vascular imaging. When patients underwent cervicocranial vascular imaging, 64% (n = 7) had findings explaining the etiology of their stroke. None of the patients was diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke on admission. Its diagnosis was delayed by an average 1.8 days following presentation. CONCLUSIONS: Acute ischemic stroke in trauma patients was a frequent diagnosis albeit with delay. Routine craniocervical vascular imaging at the time of presentation could potentially facilitate early diagnosis. A prospective study with routine craniocervical vascular imaging in trauma patients will be needed to further explore this hypothesis.

Case Report: Sequential Transarterial and Trans-Cortical Venous Embolization of a Mixed Pial-Dural AVM.

Endovascular therapy is the primary treatment modality for dural arteriovenous fistulas. Pre-treatment angiographic evaluation of dural fistulas must rule out the presence of a mixed pial component or supply from pial-dural collaterals, as the pial supply must be closed before definitive occlusion of the draining vein to prevent iatrogenic rupture. In this report, we described a case of a mixed pial-dural arterial venous malformation (AVM), which was effectively treated with a sequential transarterial and trans-cortical venous embolization.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Presenting as Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is the most common human prion disease presenting with subacute cognitive decline. Common MRI findings for CJD include the T2 prolongation signal of the putamen and head of caudate. Diffusion-weighted MRI (DW-MRI) is considered to be the most sensitive technique for the detection of CJD-related abnormalities, especially for cortical changes. We report the case of a 77-year-old female who presented with dizziness, visual hallucination, and a rapid decline in her mental state shortly after a right knee surgery. Brain MRI with contrast showed cortical and subcortical T2 fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) hyperintensities in bilateral posterior temporal lobes and the left occipital lobe without an associated enhancement, suggestive of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES). Workup including metabolic, infectious, and vasculitic panels were all within normal limits. A few days later, she developed persistent myoclonus, and a continuous electroencephalogram (EEG) revealed multifocal epileptiform and generalized discharges, forming multifocal periodic discharges and generalized periodic discharges (GPDs). Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis was positive for 14-3-3 and elevated T-tau protein consistent with a diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD). This is a rare case of CJD presenting with a brain MRI resembling PRES. CJD may have various features on MRI, and a high degree of suspicion is required to confirm the diagnosis.

Transfusion-Related Acute Brain Injury: A Case Report on Reversible Cerebral Vasoconstriction Syndrome.

Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) manifests with a thunderclap headache and reversible vascular abnormalities. Red blood cell transfusions have not been well identified as a risk factor for RCVS. We report a rare case of acute brain injury resulting from RCVS after a packed red blood cell (PRBC) transfusion. A 49-year-old female with a history of menorrhagia initially presented with generalized weakness. She was found to have a hemoglobin (Hgb) of 1.7 g/dL in the setting of a fundal fibroid for which she received five units of PRBCs. Post transfusion, she complained of several days of thunderclap headache and later returned with new-onset seizures. She was admitted to the neurocritical care unit for the treatment of status epilepticus. Metabolic, infectious and toxic work-up were unremarkable except for an elevated lactate. MRI of the brain with contrast showed extensive bilateral hemispheric and cerebellar white matter T2-weighted fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (T2/FLAIR) hyperintensities with areas of enhancement. A diagnostic cerebral angiogram was performed to evaluate for a vascular etiology and revealed focal segmental stenoses in bilateral A1 segments of the anterior cerebral arteries and in branches of the bilateral middle cerebral arteries. These findings were suggestive of RCVS. Clinicians should have a high degree of suspicion for RCVS in patients presenting with neurological manifestations, such as thunderclap headache or seizures after recent transfusion. The window for injury may be longer than that seen in other organs, such as in transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI).