Posttraumatic Cerebellar Infarction after Repeated Sport-related Minor Head Injuries in a Young Adult: A Case Report

• Published in: Neurologia medico-chirurgica Vol. 55; no. 2; pp. 179 - 182
• Main Authors: MATSUMOTO, Hiroaki, YOSHIDA, Yasuhisa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan The Japan Neurosurgical Society 2015; THE JAPAN NEUROSURGICAL SOCIETY
• Subjects: arterial spasm; Athletic Injuries - diagnostic imaging; Case Report; cerebellar infarction; Cerebellum - blood supply; Cerebral Angiography; Cerebral Infarction - diagnostic imaging; Dominance, Cerebral - physiology; Follow-Up Studies; Football - injuries; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Angiography; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; minor head injury; sport-related head injury; traumatic brain injury; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0470-8105; 1349-8029
• DOI: 10.2176/nmc.cr.2014-0094

A healthy 23-year-old man suffered helmet-to-helmet collisions with an opponent during American football game twice within 3 days. He then experienced continuous vomiting and dizziness. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed acute infarction in the right cerebellar hemisphere, and magnetic resonance angiography revealed transient stenosis of the right superior cerebellar artery. Although minor head injury is not usually accompanied by complications, posttraumatic ischemic stroke has been reported on rare occasions. We report a case of cerebellar infarction after repeated sports-related minor head injuries in a young adult and discuss the etiology.