Introduction: Intracranial vertebral artery dissecting aneurysms are a recognized cause of subarachnoid hemorrhage and the hemorrhagic recurrence risk after a first rupture of the dissecting aneurysm is high and of poor prognosis. However, when the dissection is discovered in a patient with vertebrobasilar territory ischemia, little is known about the risk of hemorrhagic rupture risk and there is no consensus on management.
Observation: We report the case of a 49-year-old man who developed subarachnoid hemorrhage 48 hours after the occurrence of a latero-bulbar syndrome caused by a spontaneous dissection with occlusion of the right vertebral artery. The subsequent angiography showed a V4 dissecting aneurysm of the right vertebral artery which was treated by stenting and coiling without any complications.
Conclusion: This case underlines the hemorrhagic risk of an intradural vertebral artery dissection and its possible progression to aneurysm. Subsequent angiographic imaging must be carefully examined to search for aneurysms which may require early specific treatment because of the high risk of recurrent bleeding.