A case of reversible postpartum cytotoxic edema in preeclampsia.
We report on a 32-year-old woman who developed reversible cortical blindness and right-sided weakness after cesarean section at 36 weeks of gestation, due to preeclampsia. An initial brain MRI demonstrated high signal intensity lesions in the bilateral occipito-parietal and left frontal lobes on T2-weighted and diffusion-weighted imaging. All of the lesions showed low signal intensity on apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) map, which were compatible with cytotoxic edema, and MR angiography (MRA) showed diffuse vasospasm of the intracranial vessels. A follow-up brain MRI showed that most of the lesions disappeared and the vasospasm also resolved. This case suggests that the cytotoxic edema in preeclampsia may evolve differently from the pattern in cerebral infarction and explains the relatively benign course of the neurological signs in preeclampsia.
Na
Sang-Jun
SJ
Department of Neurology, Yongdong Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 146-92 Dogok-dong, Kangnam-ku, Seoul, South Korea.
Hong
Ji-Man
JM
Park
Ji-Hyung
JH
Chung
Tae-Sub
TS
Lee
Kyung-Yul
KY
D000328:Adult; D001766:Blindness / Q000473:pathology; D004487:Edema / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D017585:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial