Severe supraaortal atherosclerotic disease resembling Takayasu’s Arteritis

Bernhard Kis^1,2, Thomas Liebig^3,4, Peter Berlit¹

¹Department of Neurology, Alfried Krupp Hospital, Essen, Germany; ²Department of Psychiatry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany; ³Department of Neuroradiology, Alfried Krupp Hospital, Essen, Germany; ⁴Department of Neuroradiology, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany

Abstract: We report a case of a 64 year-old man whose clinical presentation and neuroimaging findings strikingly resembled those found in Takayasu’s Arteritis which is characterized by the triad of absent radial pulses, ischemic retinopathy, and carotid sinus hyperreflexia causing syncopes. Angiographically, the patient exhibited severe atherosclerotic changes of the supraaortic large vessels. Stent-assisted angioplasty resulted in both clinical improvement and increased cerebral blood flow as measured by angiography and ultrasound.

Keywords: Takayasu’s arteritis, atherosclerosis, angiography, stent, angioplasty