Rare Causes of Cerebral Venus Sinus Thrombosis: A Systematic Review

Background: Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is a rare manifestation of thrombosis commonly caused by thrombophilia, hormonal-related factors, non-cerebral malignancy, and hematologic diseases. The aim of this review was to identify and summarize rare CVST cases. Methods: A literature search of the Medline database was performed in November 2022. CVST cases of a common cause were excluded. Demographic and clinical data were extracted. Eligible cases were categorized into inflammatory, primary CNS tumors, post-operative/traumatic, and idiopathic groups to allow statistical group comparisons. Results: 76 cases were analyzed. Idiopathic CVST was most frequently reported followed by inflammatory, post-traumatic/operative and primary CNS tumor causes. The intracranial hemorrhage rate was 23.7% and it was found to increase in the inflammatory group (45.8%). Anticoagulation was used in the majority of cases and it was significantly related to better outcomes. A low rate of anticoagulation use (43.8%) was found among CVST cases in the post-operative/traumatic group. The overall mortality rate was 9.8%. 82.4% of patients showed significant early improvement. Conclusions: Most rare CVST cases were either of idiopathic or inflammatory origin. Interestingly, hemorrhage occurred often he idiopathic CVST cases. A low rate of anticoagulation use in neurosurgical CVST cases after trauma or head surgery was observed.

Delayed Onset Bilateral Papilledema in a Young Boy's Eyes after Trauma

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is a rare venous thromboembolic disease that affects young adults in their thirties, with a female predilection. Head trauma accounts for only 1-3% of cases among possible etiologies. Here, we present a particular case of trauma-related CVST with delayed-onset symptoms and signs in a young boy. A 12-year-old boy presented to the emergency department with non-specific visual symptoms 11 days after head trauma. Apart from mild-grade disc swelling in the right eye and dyschromatopsia in both eyes, no significant findings were revealed during physical examinations and a non-contrast cranial computed tomography (CT) scan. Unfortunately, the patient suffered multiple seizure attacks the following day. Trauma-related CVST, complicated by delayed-onset increased intracranial pressure, and bilateral papilledema were finally diagnosed. Physicians need increased awareness of a possible CVST diagnosis if a patient with a history of head trauma shows persistent or worsening neurological symptoms despite negative results on serial non-contrast cranial CT scans.

Bilateral Abducens Nerve Palsy Due to Extensive Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is a relatively rare condition. We present a case of an acute aseptic thrombosis of the sagittal, transverse and sigmoid sinus in a puerperium patient with protein S deficiency. The specifics of the case include high intracranial pressure (ICP) caused by sinus thrombosis with typical symptomatology and bilateral papilloedema, which also manifested in transient bilateral abducens nerve palsy and, consequently, bilateral horizontal diplopia. The recovery of the cranial nerve function occurred 3 to 4 weeks after it was initially reported. Prompt and adequate anticoagulant therapy contributed to the almost complete recanalization of the dural venous sinus thrombosis and a positive outcome of the disease.

Cases of visual impairment caused by cerebral venous sinus occlusion-induced intracranial hypertension in the absence of headache

Background

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis or stenosis (here collectively referred to as cerebral venous sinus occlusion, CVSO) can cause chronically-elevated intracranial pressure (ICP). Patients may have no neurological symptoms other than visual impairment, secondary to bilateral papilledema. Correctly recognizing these conditions, through proper ophthalmological examination and brain imaging, is very important to avoid delayed diagnosis and treatment.

Case presentation

We report a case series of 3 patients with chronic CVSO, who were admitted to an ophthalmological department in Chongqing, China, from 2015 March to 2017 February. All patients presented with decreased vision and bilateral papilledema, but had no headache or other neurological symptoms. The visual fields of all patients were impaired. Flash visual evoked potentials (VEPs) in two patients showed essentially normal peak time of P2 wave, and pattern VEPs in one patient displayed decreased P100 amplitude in one eye, while a normal P100 wave in the other eye. In all patients, lumbar puncture (LP) revealed significantly elevated ICP. And magnetic resonance venography (MRV) demonstrated cerebral venous sinus abnormalities in every patient: one right sigmoid sinus thrombosis, one superior sagittal sinus thrombosis, and one right transverse sinus stenosis.

Conclusions

CVSO can cause chronically-elevated ICP, leading to bilateral papilledema and visual impairment. A considerable amount of patients have no apparent neurological symptoms other than visual loss. Unlike other optic nerve lesions, such as neuritis or ischemic optic neuropathy, the optic disc edema in CVSO is usually bilateral, the flash or pattern VEP is often normal or only mildly affected, and patients are often not sensitive to steroid therapy. CVSO should be suspected in such patients when unenhanced brain imaging is normal. Further investigations, such as LP and contrast-enhanced imaging (MRV and digital subtraction angiography), should be performed to diagnose or exclude CVSO.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Cerebral Venous Thrombosis: A Review

Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), also called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), is a cerebrovascular disease with diverse clinical manifestations that often affects young adults, women of childbearing age, and children. It's most common clinical manifestations are headache, seizures, altered consciousness, and neurological focal signs on physical examination. CVT can manifest as a single symptom, or it can present as a syndrome consisting of multiple symptoms. This non-specific clinical picture makes diagnosing CVT difficult. Although the mortality rate of CVT has been significantly reduced by improvements in treatment and diagnostic techniques, the mortality rate of severe CVT remains as high as 34.2%. Survivors of this type of CVT have varying degrees of residual symptoms and are not able to return to their previous work. Hence, we performed a comprehensive literature search in the PubMed, EMBASE, and Medline databases to review the diagnosis and treatment of CVT.

New Developments in the Pathophysiology, Workup, and Diagnosis of Dural Venous Sinus Thrombosis (DVST) and a Systematic Review of Endovascular Treatments

Dural venous sinus thrombosis (DVST) is a rare cause of stroke, which typically affects young women. The importance of identifying pre-disposing factors that lead to venous stasis lies in the foundation of understanding the etiology, pathophysiology and clinical presentation. The precise therapeutic role of interventional therapies is not fully understood though the current data do suggest potential applications. The aim of the study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the utility of and short-term 30-day survival after endovascular therapy for patients with DVST. Standard PRISMA guidelines were followed. Data sources included PubMed keywords and phrases, which were also incorporated into a MeSH search to yield articles indexed in Medline over a 5-year period. All RCTs, observational cohort studies, and administrative registries comparing or reporting DVST were included. Sixty-six studies met inclusion criteria. 35 articles investigating treatment in a summation of 10,285 patients were eligible for data extraction and included in the review of treatment modalities. A total of 312 patients were included for statistical analysis. All patients included received endovascular intervention with direct thrombolysis, mechanical thrombectomy or both. 133 (42.6%) patients were documented to have a neurologic decline, which prompted endovascular intervention. All patients who had endovascular interventions were those who were started on and failed systemic anticoagulation. 44 patients were reported to have intracranial hemorrhages after intervention. Regardless of systemic anticoagulation, patients were still reported to have complications of VTE and PE. Primary outcome at 3-6 month follow up revealed mRS<1 in 224 patients. DVST presents with many diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. The utility of invasive interventions such as local thrombolysis and mechanical thrombectomy is not fully understood. It is exceedingly difficult to conduct large randomized trials for this low incidence disease process with large pathophysiological heterogeneity.

MRI in the Evaluation of Acute Visual Syndromes

Acute visual symptom emergencies occur commonly and present a challenge to both clinical and radiologic facets. Although most patients with visual complaints routinely require clinical evaluation with direct ophthalmologic evaluation, imaging is rarely necessary. However, there are highly morbid conditions where the prompt recognition and management of an acute visual syndrome (AVS) requires an astute physician to probe further. Suspicious symptomatology including abrupt visual loss, diplopia, ophthalmoplegia, and proptosis/exophthalmos require further investigation with advanced imaging modalities such as magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance angiography. This review will discuss a variety of AVSs including orbital apex syndrome, cavernous sinus thrombosis, cavernous carotid fistula, acute hypertensive encephalopathy (posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome), optic neuritis, pituitary apoplexy including hemorrhage into an existing adenoma, and idiopathic intracranial hypertension. A discussion of each entity will focus on the clinical presentation, management and prognosis when necessary and finally, neuroimaging with emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging. The primary purpose of this review is to provide an organized approach to the differential diagnosis and typical imaging patterns for AVSs. We have provided a template for radiologists and specialists to assist in early intervention in order to decrease morbidity and provide value-based patient care through imaging.