Spontaneous Vertebral Artery Dissection in a Healthy 26 Year Old Female Patient: A Case Study

Spontaneous vertebral artery dissection (SVAD) is an extremely rare, yet life-threatening, event that can potentially result in ischemic stroke or subarachnoid hemorrhage, depending on the origin and extension of the dissection. Vertebral artery dissection is more commonly associated with traumatic injury to the neck, resulting in compromised structural integrity of the vertebral artery wall. This case study discusses the clinical presentation, physical examination, diagnosis, clinical course, and outcome for a young, otherwise healthy, female patient who presented to the emergency department with a SVAD.