[Vascular hemiballismus due to extraluysian lesions].
BACKGROUND
Hemiballismus is a very rare disorder; less than 7% of all hyperkinetic disorders. Classically, a lesion of the contralateral corpus Luysii is involved. We report a case of hemiballismus due to an extraluysian lesions and discuss the underlying pathophysiology.


METHODS
A 74-year-old women, with a history of diabetes and hypertension, developed left-sided hemiballismus one week before admission. The brain MRI showed a right lenticular nucleus hematoma with vascular leucoencephalopathy. The patient was given haloperidol and recovered well. The brain MRI showed the integrity of both corpus Luysii.


CONCLUSIONS
Hemiballismus has been classically characterized as pathognomonic of a lesion in the contralateral corpus Luysii. However, many cases due to an extraluysian lesion of the striatum, caudate or thalamus have been reported recently. Prognosis is benign in most cases.
Adali
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N
CHU Mohammed-VI, BP, casa-Elfida Casablanca, Maroc. nawaladali@yahoo.fr
Kissani
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N
D000368:Aged; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000473:pathology; D020820:Dyskinesias / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging