Radiation Diagnostics of Ischemic Stroke in Pediatric Practice: an Approach in the SARS-CoV2 Pandemic

Abstract

Stroke is a condition of acute cerebrovascular accident (ACV), with neurological symptoms corresponding that last more than 24 hours. This condition can lead to severe disability, persistent disorders motor and cognitive functions, and even death of the child. The most common causes of strokes in children: aneurysms, vascular malformations, neuroinfections, rheumatological and oncological diseases. As the epidemic COVID-19 spreads, its pathogenetic mechanisms have been identified that contribute to the development of ACV, including in children. These mechanisms may also play a role in the development of ACV in the course of other acute respiratory viral infections. Technological development and increasing availability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) allows to detect strokes at the earliest stages. A comprehensive examination, including clinical, laboratory, instrumental examination data, neuroimaging techniques, is necessary for the verification and pathogenetic treatment of ACV in children and adults. This article describes the problems of early diagnosis of childhood stroke and the features of choosing a radiological method of research. Below is a clinical case of an 11-year-old patient with a genetically determined tendency to thrombosis, who had previously suffered an acute respiratory disease, with consequences in the form of an ischemic stroke in the basin of the left middle cerebral artery - in the area of blood supply to the anterior choroidal artery.