Cerebral vasospasm with ischemia following a spontaneous spinal subarachnoid hemorrhage

Abstract

Cerebral vasospasm is a well-known consequence of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) triggered by blood breakdown products. Here, we present the first case of cerebral vasospasm with ischemia following a spontaneous spinal SAH. A 67-year-old woman, who was on Coumadin for atrial fibrillation, presented with chest pain radiating to the back accompanied by headache and leg paresthesias. The international normalized ratio (INR) was 4.5. Ten hours after presentation, she developed loss of movement in both legs and lack of sensation below the umbilicus. Spine MRI showed intradural hemorrhage. Her coagulopathy was reversed, and she underwent T2 to T12 laminectomies. A large subarachnoid hematoma was evacuated. Given her complaint of headache preoperatively and the intraoperative finding of spinal SAH, a head CT was done postoperatively that displayed SAH in peripheral sulci. On postoperative day 5, she became obtunded. Brain MRI demonstrated focal restricted diffusion in the left frontoparietal area. Formal angiography revealed vasospasm in anterior cerebral arteries bilaterally and right middle cerebral artery. Vasospasm was treated, and she returned to baseline within 48 hours. Spontaneous spinal SAH can result in the same sequelae typically associated with aneurysmal SAH, and the clinician must have a degree of suspicion in such patients. The pathophysiological mechanisms underlying cerebral vasospasm may explain this unique case. © 2013 Sophia F. Shakur and Hamad I. Farhat.