Prenatal diagnosis of a subdural hematoma associated with reverse flow in the middle cerebral artery: case report and literature review. (17/309)

To our knowledge this is the first reported case of a subdural hematoma, related to fetal autoimmune thrombocytopenia, diagnosed prenatally by ultrasound. The underlying etiology was hidden maternal autoimmune thrombocytopenia. This disease, which is as serious as alloimmune thrombocytopenia, causes severe fetal thrombocytopenia, which carries with it a high risk of intracranial hemorrhage and recurrence in subsequent pregnancies. Only 14 cases of fetal subdural hematomas have been reported in the literature. The etiologies of these cases were principally traumatic, or due to disorders of hemostasis. Their prognoses were generally poor, with 50% resulting in fetal death in utero and the remaining 50% demonstrating post-natal sequelae. The presence of reverse flow in the middle cerebral artery is rare and its association with a subdural hematoma unusual. Abnormalities found on cerebral Doppler studies indicate an adaptive response to a fetal condition for which the prognosis is then very poor. Monitoring fetuses at risk for hemorrhage by ultrasound imaging and Doppler studies enables us to detect indicators of a worsening prognosis before the ultrasound appearance of morphological hemorrhage. The development of intracranial hemorrhage raises difficult management issues during the index pregnancy and in subsequent pregnancies.  (+info)

Displacement of anterior cerebral vessels in cerebral dynamic study in cases of chronic subdural hematomas. (18/309)

About 75-80% chronic subdural hematomas give positive results in a brain scan. The typical scintigraphic finding of chronic subdural hematoma is a diffuse widening and increase of the peripheral activity on the anterior view. In the flow studies subdural hematomas lead occasionally to peripheral activity defects. In two cases of chronic subdural hematoma without typical patterns in a perfusion study as well as in static images, we found a displacement of the anterior cerebral vessels as an indircet sign of space occupation.  (+info)

Non-invasive screening for surgical intracranial lesions. (19/309)

The value and reliability of the combined results of skull radiographs, electroencephalography, echoencephalography, isotope angiography, and brain scanning in 147 patients suspected of having an intracranial space occupying lesions are analysed. The overall accuracy of the technique was 79%. No false negatives were found. The advantages of adopting the system proposed by the authors in everyday clinical work is discussed.  (+info)

Neurological complications of cervical spine manipulation. (20/309)

To obtain preliminary data on neurological complications of spinal manipulation in the UK all members of the Association of British Neurologists were asked to report cases referred to them of neurological complications occurring within 24 hours of cervical spine manipulation over a 12-month period. The response rate was 74%. 24 respondents reported at least one case each, contributing to a total of about 35 cases. These included 7 cases of stroke in brainstem territory (4 with confirmation of vertebral artery dissection), 2 cases of stroke in carotid territory and 1 case of acute subdural haematoma. There were 3 cases of myelopathy and 3 of cervical radiculopathy. Concern about neurological complications following cervical spine manipulation appears to be justified. A large long-term prospective study is required to determine the scale of the hazard.  (+info)

Characteristics of patients with antiphospholipid syndrome with major bleeding after oral anticoagulant treatment. (21/309)

OBJECTIVE: To study the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) with serious haemorrhagic complications of anticoagulant treatment in an attempt to establish risk factors for bleeding. METHODS: Patients with APS who were attending our lupus unit and who presented with severe bleeding while receiving oral anticoagulation were studied retrospectively. Severe bleeding was defined by the need for admission to hospital. Demographic data, clinical features, concomitant diseases and drugs, warfarin doses, duration of anticoagulation, and International Normalised Ratios (INR) at the time of bleeding were collected. RESULTS: Fifteen patients were included in the study (12 with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) plus APS and 3 with primary APS). The median age was 41.7 (range 27-66) and the median duration of the disease was 12.9 years (range 3-22). Duration of anticoagulation was between 10 days and 17 years. The INR at the time of bleeding was under 3 in 4 patients, between 3 and 4 in 5 patients and above 4 in 6 patients. There were 4 episodes of subdural haematoma, 4 episodes of renal haematoma (two after renal biopsy), 2 episodes of ovarian haemorrhage, 2 episodes of rectal haemorrhage, 1 episode of menorrhagia, 1 episode of haemarthrosis, and 1 episode of spinal haematoma. Concomitant drugs were aspirin in 9 patients, antibiotics in 2 patients, and azathioprine in 3 patients. In 6 patients hypertension was present as a concomitant disease. There were no deaths due to bleeding. Anticoagulant treatment was restarted in all patients and 3 of them had a new episode of bleeding. CONCLUSION: No relation was established between age, duration of oral anticoagulant treatment, and bleeding. Concomitant drugs, mainly aspirin, and high blood pressure were present at the time of bleeding in a large number of patients.  (+info)

Tumefactive fibroinflammatory lesion of the neck with progressive invasion of the meninges, skull base, orbit, and brain. (22/309)

SUMMARY: Tumefactive fibroinflammatory lesions of the head and neck are rare. CNS involvement has not been reported. We present a histologically proven case of a tumefactive fibroinflammatory lesion that originated in the left side of the neck and progressed over 2 years to involve the meninges, the cavernous sinuses, the right temporal lobe, and the right orbit. The lesion caused destruction of the skull base and a subdural hematoma. The relationship of the present lesion to idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis and Tolosa-Hunt syndrome is discussed.  (+info)

Rapid spontaneous resolution of acute subdural hematoma occurs by redistribution--Two case reports. (23/309)

Coronal magnetic resonance imaging provided evidence of redistribution during the rapid spontaneous resolution of acute subdural hematoma (ASDH) in two patients. A 79-year-old female was transferred to our hospital after a traffic accident. Computed tomography (CT) on admission demonstrated an ASDH in the right frontal cerebral cortex. CT 12 hours after the accident revealed spontaneous resolution of the ASDH. Coronal magnetic resonance (MR) imaging 3 days after the accident clearly detected a very thin, sharply demarcated layer diffusely covering the cerebral convexity and the middle cranial fossa. A 41-year-old female fell and sustained head trauma with the loss of consciousness. CT on admission demonstrated an ASDH in the left frontal cerebral cortex. CT 12 hours after the accident revealed spontaneous resolution of the ASDH. Coronal MR imaging 3 days after the insult clearly demonstrated the redistribution and dispersal of the hematoma. Although CT showed the disappearance of the hematoma, MR imaging demonstrated redistribution rather than disappearance of the blood in both cases. These cases indicate that spontaneous resolution of ASDH occurs by redistribution and dispersal of the hematoma.  (+info)

An unusual case of subdural haematoma presenting to the accident and emergency department. (24/309)

A case of subdural haematoma associated with an intracranial arachnoid cyst is reported. The pathogenesis, clinical presentation and treatment options of intracranial arachnoid cysts is discussed.  (+info)