Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2016 Jul;23(2):124-6.
doi: 10.1159/000443570. Epub 2016 Jul 7.

Artery of Percheron Infarction

K V Vinod  1 , R Kaaviya  1 , Bhaumik Arpita  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Artery of Percheron Infarction

K V Vinod et al. Ann Neurosci. 2016 Jul.

Abstract

Artery of Percheron (AOP) occlusion is a rare cause of ischemic stroke characterized by bilateral paramedian thalamic infarcts, with or without mesencephalic infarction. Clinically it presents with mental state disturbances, hypersomnolence, aphasia/dysarthria, amnesia and ocular movement disorders, including vertical gaze palsy. Here, we report a case of cardioembolic AOP infarction in a 37-year-old woman with rheumatic mitral valvular stenosis. This case is being reported to highlight the interesting clinical and neuroimaging features of this rare condition, and the differential diagnosis of AOP infarction on imaging have been discussed.

Keywords: Brainstem stroke; Hypersomnolence; Thalamic infarct; Vertical gaze palsy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Axial T2-weighted MR FLAIR image of the brain showing bilateral paramedian thalamic hyperintensities (arrows), suggesting acute infarcts.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
T2-FLAIR axial image of brain showing rostral midbrain infarct and a V-shaped hyperintense signal intensity along the pial surface of the midbrain at the interpeduncular fossa (the ‘V’ sign, indicated by arrow).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Coronal T2-weighted MR image of brain showing hyperintensities in bilateral paramedian thalami (arrows) and rostral midbrain (arrowhead), suggesting acute infarcts.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Axial diffusion-weighted MR image of brain, showing restricted diffusion (hyperintense signals indicated by arrows) in bilateral paramedian thalami, suggesting acute infarcts.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Lazzaro NA, Wright B, Castillo M, et al. Artery of Percheron infarction: imaging patterns and clinical spectrum. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2010;31:1283–1289. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kumral E, Evyapan D, Balkir K, et al. Bilateral thalamic infarction. Clinical, etiological and MRI correlates. Acta Neurol Scand. 2001;103:35–42. - PubMed
    1. Matheus MG, Castillo M. Imaging of acute bilateral paramedian thalamic and mesencephalic infarcts. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2003;24:2005–2008. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Arauz A, Patiño-Rodríguez HM, Vargas-González JC, et al. Clinical spectrum of artery of Percheron infarct: clinical-radiological correlations. J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis. 2014;23:1083–1088. - PubMed
    1. Kostanian V, Cramer SC. Artery of Percheron thrombolysis. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2007;28:870–871. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types