Sadahiro Hirokazu, Ishihara Hideyuki, Goto Hisaharu, Oka Humiaki, Shirao Satoshi, Yoneda Hiroshi, Suzuki Michiyasu
Department of Neurosurgery and Clinical Neuroscience, Yamaguchi University, Yamaguchi, Japan.
J Neuroimaging. 2014 Jan-Feb;24(1):83-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1552-6569.2011.00656.x. Epub 2011 Nov 14.
We report the case of a 67-year-old man with repeating cerebral embolism caused by a dolichoectatic right common carotid artery. The patient had a history of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, cigarette smoking, and a postoperative abdominal aortic aneurysm. He presented with a sudden onset of weakness of the left arm and leg. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed old and fresh infarction in the right cerebral hemisphere. Carotid duplex ultrasonography showed a dolichoectatic right common carotid artery with a maximum diameter of 39 mm with thick plaque and strong spontaneous echo contrast. The flow velocity was considerably reduced, which caused thrombus formation, and strong antithrombotic therapy was required. This case provides a rare example of ischemic stroke caused by extracranial carotid artery dolichoectasia.
