CRANIAL COMPUTERIZED-TOMOGRAPHY STROKE PATTERNS IN PATIENTS WITH CARDIAC SOURCES OF EMBOLISM, EXTRACRANIAL LARGE-ARTERY DISEASE OR NO EXTRACRANIAL SOURCE

The hypothesis of an association between stroke mechanisms (cardiac so urces of embolism, extracranial large-artery disease, hypertension) an d cranial computerized tomography stroke patterns was tested in a pros pective study. 200 consecutive patients with focal brain ischemia were investigated by echocardiography (transthoracic and transesophageal a pproach), Doppler sonography, electrocardiography, and cranial compute rized tomography (rated masked). Except for low-flow infarcts and caro tid artery stenoses the association between stroke mechanisms and stro ke patterns was weak. Lacunes were found with almost equal frequencies in patients with cardiac sources of embolism, extracranial large-arte ry disease or no extracranial source (with or without hypertension). T he predictive value of cranial computerized tomography stroke patterns for the finding of possible stroke mechanisms is low. An embolic etio logy of lacunes cannot be excluded.