CAROTID-ARTERY OCCLUSION FOLLOWING A KARATE PUNCH TO THE NECK

A 43-year-old corrections officer developed right neck and posterior h ead pain following a karate punch to the right side of the neck during self-defense training, One week later, he developed an acute left hem iparesis. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a right hemisphere c erebral infarction and absence of signal flow void in the right intern al carotid artery, Carotid ultrasound demonstrated complete occlusion of the right internal carotid artery without evidence of atherosclerot ic disease, Carotid occlusion with cerebrovascular infarction is a pos sible complication of martial arts training involving forceful blows t o the neck.