Acute left ventricular dysfunction and left ventricular thrombus in a patient with cerebral hemorrhage

A 66-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital with a cerebral hemorrhage. An echocardiogram showed severe left ventricular hypokinesis and a left ventricular thrombus. An electrocardiogram showed ST segment elevation in the precordial leads. The patient's creatine kinase level was elevated. A follow-up echocardiogram performed 1 month after admission showed normalization of left ventricular wall motion and disappearance of the thrombus. The results of thallium myocardial scintigraphy, coronary arteriography, and left ventriculography performed 1 month after admission were normal, and the patient was discharged without clinical sequelae. The cause of the patient's left ventricular dysfunction was believed to be not myocardial infarction or myocarditis, but a massive adrenergic discharge due to the cerebral hemorrhage.