Ischemic stroke secondary to self-inflicted carotid sinus massage: a case report

Left hemispheric cortical watershed infarcts triggered by carotid sinus self-massage

A 69-year-old man was presented to our emergency department with acute onset of hemianopsia, aphasia and dizziness. He reported that while he was sitting in front of his computer at home, he had performed a bilateral self-massage of his carotid arteries when suddenly the symptoms occurred. A neurological examination revealed a hemianopsia with a visual field loss on the right side. In addition, a mild aphasic syndrome with agraphia and a word-finding disorder (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS): 3 points) was diagnosed. The initial brain CT scan with CT angiography showed neither an intracerebral haemorrhage nor a cerebral infarction. Also, no occlusion or any signs of artery dissection or a flow relevant stenosis of the brain supplying arteries were found. After excluding other contraindications, an intravenous thrombolysis with weight-adapted alteplase was performed. The symptoms of the patient significantly improved in the short-term follow-up. Three days after admission no neurological deficits remained. The MRI of the brain revealed multifocal, small, left hemispherical strokes in the middle cerebral artery territory. In general, watershed infarcts after carotid sinus self-massage follow a rare ischaemic stroke mechanism. This case emphasises the importance of a detailed anamnestic evaluation to determine the aetiological classification of ischaemic stroke as well as educating patients' (poststroke) behaviour.