Spectrum of Posterior Cerebral Artery Dissection: A Retrospective Observational Study and a Critical Review

Intracranial arterial dissections commonly involve the vertebrobasilar system leading to subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or cerebral infarction attributable to a dissecting aneurysm of the vessel or occlusion of the lumen depending on the depth of dissection. However, isolated posterior cerebral artery dissections (PCADs) are rare and sparsely reported in the literature.

A retrospective multicentric observational study was carried out after collecting data from 14 patients admitted with PCAD in three hospitals of Kolkata, Jaipur, and Patna within the period of July 2021 to June 2022.

The median age of the population was 48.5 years, and 64.28% were females. SAH was the most common presentation with dissecting aneurysms in all patients barring one, who presented with a left occipital infarct consequent to ipsilateral PCAD. Among the 14 patients, three patients denied endovascular intervention and were lost to follow-up; one patient with an occipital infarct and another patient with a dissecting left P3 aneurysm, which underwent spontaneous thrombosis, were managed conservatively. Among the nine patients scheduled for endovascular coiling, one patient succumbed before intervention and one patient succumbed to sepsis in the postoperative period. A complete recovery was noted in six patients, whereas residual neurodeficits were present in three patients. Among the six patients who had an uneventful recovery at the end of 3 months, five patients had an endovascular intervention.

PCAD may present with large-scale neurodeficits and is associated with high morbidity and mortality, hence necessitating prompt management. Conservative management is preferable for consequent infarcts, whereas endovascular management is desirable in cases of dissecting aneurysms, which usually tend to have a favorable outcome if intervened early.