title: Connective tissue disorders in dissections of the carotid or vertebral arteries.
abstract: Dissections of the carotid or vertebral arteries are a significant cause of ischemic stroke. Their etiology includes not only mechanical forces but also underlying arteriopathies such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome type IV and other connective tissue disorders. Furthermore, dissections often occur spontaneously or after minor trauma in otherwise healthy individuals without clinically evident underlying aberrations. However, in some of these patients ultrastructural connective tissue changes can be detected. An overview of connective tissue disorders associated with dissections of the carotid or vertebral arteries is presented.
authors.affiliation: University of Ulm, Department of Neurology, Oberer Eselsberg 45, 89081 Ulm, Germany. hans-juergen.gdynia@uni-ulm.de
authors.forename: Hans-Jürgen
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Gdynia
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kühnlein
authors.forename: Albert C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Ludolph
authors.forename: Roman
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Huber
mesh_terms: D020215:Carotid Artery, Internal, Dissection / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D003240:Connective Tissue Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D016239:MEDLINE / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020217:Vertebral Artery Dissection / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy