Blunt basal head trauma: rupture of posterior inferior cerebellar artery.

Two cases are reported of rupture of posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) from blunt basal head trauma. The anatomy at the site of rupture is discussed as a prerequisite for rupture. The rapid fatal course is also discussed. The authors propose that the forensic term "traumatic subarachnoid haemorrhage" ought to be abandoned and replaced by the nature and localization the source of bleeding, analogous to clinical practice at the spontaneous haemorrhage from rupture of aneurysm.