Assessment of bilateral cerebral peduncular infarction: Magnetic resonance imaging, clinical features, and prognosis

Background: Bilateral cerebral peduncular infarction (BCPI) is an extremely rare neurological disorder, and related literature is scarce. This study investigated the clinical manifestations, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features and prognosis of BCPI.

Method: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical features, MRI and magnetic resonance angiography manifestations, and prognosis of 14 patients with BCPI, confirmed by diffusion-weighted MRI from 5050 cerebral infarction patients at our medical center from January 2007 to June 2013.

Result: Eleven of the 14 (78.6%) patients had quadriplegia and 9 (64.3%) had decreased consciousness. At the most severe stage, the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores ranged from grades 4 to 26 (mean grade, 18.9). Eleven (78.6%) cases were caused by large artery atherosclerosis. Besides the bilateral cerebral peduncle, the pons (85.7%) and cerebellum (42.9%) were the other infarct locations. Twelve (85.7%) patients had vertebrobasilar artery occlusion or severe stenosis, and 12 (85.7%) did not have collateral patency of the posterior cerebral artery. Thirteen (92.9%) patients had poor prognosis and 9 of them died.

Occlusion: BCPI is a very rare disorder and associated with severe vertebrobasilar artery stenosis or occlusion without collateral patency of the posterior communicating artery. It has a very poor prognosis.