Ataxic hemiparesia due to lacunar infarct.

Ataxic hemiparesis is a syndrome in which pyramidal and cerebellar signs oc cur on the same side. Few authors have suggested that signs or symptoms can orientate toward a supratentorial or toward an infratentorial lesion. We h ave studied the risk factors and the clinical symptoms of 61 patients conse cutively admitted for an ataxic hemiparesis due to a lacunar infarct diagno sed with MRI. The MRI was normal in 2 cases. A tandem lacunar infarct was f ound in 9 cases (pons and internal capsule in 5 cases, pens and corona radi ata in 4 cases) and a clinico-radiological correlation was performed in 50 cases. The comparison of risk factors did not show any difference between t he infratentorial (n = 10) and the supratenforial groups (n = 40) excepting for the history of coronary disease. The history of coronary disease was s tatistically more frequent in the infratentorial group, No difference was f ound for clinical findings between the 2 groups.