Ultrasound Criteria for Diagnosing Spontaneous Cervical Artery Dissections

This article describes the diagnostic criteria and typical findings of spontaneous dissection, in which no dissecting membrane is to be expected as in aortic dissection. Traumatic dissections following blunt or penetrating injuries also present with different findings. Examiners should be aware of possible differential diagnoses whose ultrasound image may mimic a dissection. A frequently occurring but avoidable cause of misdiagnosis is idiopathic carotidynia. Ultrasound also enables differentiation between dissection and vasculitis or carotid web and detection of normal variants such as fenestration of the vertebral artery. Further possibilities for misdiagnosis may arise in the presence of a variant of the ascending pharyngeal artery or in extracranial vasospasm. The different imaging techniques for the detection of a dissection are complementary, as false-negative findings occur with all techniques; no method serves as the gold standard. In any case, ultrasound can make an important contribution to the detection of a dissection, and it is worth knowing the diagnostic criteria.Die spontane Dissektion hirnversorgender Halsarterien, die auch Befunde nach Bagatellverletzungen einschließt, ist eine der Hauptursachen ischämischer Schlaganfälle bei jungen Erwachsenen. Schlaganfälle bei Dissektion sind meist auf eine arterioarterielle Embolie zurückzuführen und sind selten das erste Symptom einer Dissektion, da sich zunächst ein intraluminaler Thrombus bilden muss. Daher kan...

Source: Ultraschall in der Medizin - February 6, 2023 Category: Radiology Authors: Christian Arning Source Type: research