Tobias Saam1, Thomas Pfefferkorn2,
Maximilian Habs1, Marcus Hacker3, Axel Rominger3,
Clemens C. Cyran1, Martin Dichgans2, Maximilian F.
Reiser1, Konstantin Nikolaou1
1Clinical Radiology, University of
Munich, Munich, Bavaria, Germany; 2Neurology, University of
Munich, Munich, Bavaria, Germany; 3Nuclear Medicine, University of
Munich, Munich, Bavaria, Germany
Spontaneous
cervical artery dissection (sCAD) is a frequent cause of ischemic stroke in
young adults. The pathogenesis of sCAD is poorly understood. The aim of this
study was to use PET/CT and MRI to estimate the prevalence of perivascular
inflammation in sCAD. This study demonstrates that inflammatory changes at
the site of the arterial dissection are common in sCAD patients. In a subset
of these patients, perivascular inflammation was not confined to the site of
the dissection, suggesting that vessel wall inflammation might play a role in
the pathogenesis of sCAD.