About Us

53 year-old with subarachnoid and intraventricular hemorrhage

CT noncontrast

Right internal carotid artery injection arterial phase frontal view

Right internal carotid artery injection arterial phase lateral view

Right internal carotid artery injection venous phase lateral view


Findings:

Markedly slow cerebral contrast transit with faster external carotid reflux flow than internal flow (arterial phase) and delayed arterial clearing (venous phase). Right ICA aneurysm (cause of SAH)

DDX:

inadvertent external carotid (instead of internal carotid) injection, vasospasm, cerebral hypoperfusion


Diagnosis:

ICA aneurysm rupture with severe SAH and cerebral swelling and hypoperfusion.

Discussion:

This degree of cerebral hypoperfusion while not equivalent to “brain death”, nevertheless indicates a very poor prognosis. It was elected to withdraw support and not treat the aneurysm. SPECT demonstrated brain death


Submitted by Dean Shibata, MD, UW Neuroradiology