Hirata Takeru, Miyama Yudai, Ota Takahiro
Department of Neurosurgery, Tokyo Metropolitan Tama Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan.
NMC Case Rep J. 2025 Apr 25;12:175-179. doi: 10.2176/jns-nmc.2024-0293. eCollection 2025.
Variations in the posterior inferior cerebellar artery are well-documented. However, bilateral posterior inferior cerebellar artery originating from the posterior meningeal artery is extremely rare, and no such cases have been previously reported. Anastomosis between the anterior inferior cerebellar artery and posterior inferior cerebellar artery is a rare arterial anomaly that may arise due to remnants of the primitive lateral basilovertebral anastomosis during embryonic development. A 61-year-old male presented with headache, vomiting, and left lower extremity ataxia. Brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed an acute infarction in the left medulla, and magnetic resonance angiography suggested a dissection of the left vertebral artery. Digital subtraction angiography revealed the posterior meningeal artery originating from the extracranial vertebral artery, supplying the bilateral posterior inferior cerebellar artery hemispheric branches. The original posterior inferior cerebellar artery from the distal vertebral artery supplied only the cerebellar vermis. Additionally, an anterior inferior cerebellar artery-posterior inferior cerebellar artery anastomosis was observed on the left side. This case highlights two rare arterial anomalies: bilateral posterior inferior cerebellar artery hemispheric branches originating from the posterior meningeal artery and an anterior inferior cerebellar artery-posterior inferior cerebellar artery anastomosis, offering insights into the embryologic development and unique vascular structures involved.
小脑后下动脉的变异已有充分记录。然而,双侧小脑后下动脉起源于脑膜后动脉极为罕见,此前尚无此类病例报告。小脑前下动脉与小脑后下动脉之间的吻合是一种罕见的动脉异常,可能是由于胚胎发育过程中原始外侧基底椎动脉吻合的残留所致。一名61岁男性出现头痛、呕吐和左下肢共济失调。脑部磁共振成像显示左延髓急性梗死,磁共振血管造影提示左椎动脉夹层。数字减影血管造影显示脑膜后动脉起源于颅外椎动脉,供应双侧小脑后下动脉半球支。来自椎动脉远端的原始小脑后下动脉仅供应小脑蚓部。此外,左侧观察到小脑前下动脉-小脑后下动脉吻合。该病例突出了两种罕见的动脉异常:双侧小脑后下动脉半球支起源于脑膜后动脉以及小脑前下动脉-小脑后下动脉吻合,为涉及的胚胎发育和独特血管结构提供了见解。