title: Blunt cerebrovascular injury in children.
abstract: Blunt cerebrovascular injury in children is an uncommon occurrence that if missed and left untreated can result in devastating long-term neurologic consequences. Diagnosis can be readily obtained by a computed tomographic angiogram of the head and neck. If confirmed, treatment with antithrombotic therapy dramatically reduces the risk of a cerebrovascular accident. The difficulty lies in determining which child should be screened for such an injury. Several institutions have come up with criteria for screening. In this article, we review the nuances of the cerebrovascular system and its resulting injury. We present recent literature on the subject in an attempt to add clarity to this challenging situation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, 100 North Mario Capecchi Dr, Suite 3800, Salt Lake City, Utah 84113. Electronic address: stephen.fenton@hsc.utah.edu.
authors.forename: Stephen J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Fenton
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Bollo
mesh_terms: D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening; D057772:Vascular System Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014949:Wounds, Nonpenetrating / Q000175:diagnosis*
keywords: Blunt cardiovascular injury; Children; Pediatric; Trauma