[Intracerebral Hemorrhage]

Abstract

CT angiography(CTA)plays a crucial role in the diagnosis of intracerebral hemorrhage(ICH). An 85-year-old woman presented with a disturbance of consciousness and right hemiparesis. Non-contrast CT of the brain revealed intracerebral hemorrhage in the left thalamus spreading to the internal capsule, corona radiata, and midbrain and a "swirl sign." CTA revealed no vascular anomaly. The early and delayed CTA phases revealed the"spot sign" and "leakage sign," respectively. Non-contrast CT three hours after the initial CT showed the enlargement of the hematoma. After the detection of ICH by initial non-contrast CT, CTA should be performed to differentiate between the causes of secondary ICH and detect the imaging markers of hematoma expansion or rebleeding. Previous studies have demonstrated that the "spot sign" detected by CTA is a valid imaging marker for hematoma expansion. In this article, the differential diagnosis of ICH and the detection of the imaging markers of hematoma expansion using non-contrast CT and CTA have been discussed.