Pseudoaneurysm of the internal carotid artery in an infant aged 8 months

Pseudoaneurysm of the carotid artery is a potentially life-threatening complication of deep neck space infection. It clinically manifests by pulsatile neck swelling, lower cranial nerve palsy, and Horner's syndrome. There may be sentinel bleed from nose or oral cavity before the massive haemorrhage, from carotid artery rupture. We present a case of pseudoaneurysm of the internal carotid artery (ICA) following parapharyngeal and retropharyngeal space infection in an 8-month-old infant. Emergency carotid artery ligation was performed and the infant recovered well without any neurological sequelae.