Citation

Liu WP, Ng KC, Hung JJ. Yale J. Biol. Med. 2005; 78(3): 151-156.

Affiliation

Department of Emergency Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Yuanlin, Changhua, Taiwan.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2005, Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

16464314

PMCID

PMC2259146

Abstract

Blunt injury to the carotid artery is rare but may produce a devastating outcome with longterm morbidity. Initial recognition by clinicians is often difficult because of the diverse clinical manifestations, the delay in presentation of symptoms, and the associated multi-organ system injuries that accompany carotid injury. Early diagnosis and successful management of traumatic carotid artery injury require a high index of clinical suspicion. We report herein a 20-year-old male victim of internal carotid artery injury induced by a motorcycle accident, who initially presented with a clear consciousness and had normal computed tomogram (CT) of brain. Two days after injury, the patient suffered from left hemiplegia and coma. The follow-up brain CT showed acute infarction of right cerebrum and severe cerebral edema. Emergency craniotomy for brain decompression and anticoagulation therapy was carried out. After a three-month treatment, he was discharged and underwent regular follow-up in the outpatient department. Six months later, the patient had intact awareness but remained in a left-sided hemiparetic state.

Language: en