Anatomy of Cerebral Arteries with Clinical Aspects in Patients with Ischemic Stroke

Abstract

Computed tomography (CT) angiography is the main method for the initial evaluation of cerebral circulation in acute stroke. A comprehensive CT examination that includes a review of the three-dimensional and maximum-intensity projection images of the main intra and extracranial arteries allows the identification of most abnormalities and normal variants. Anatomical knowledge of the presence of any normal variants, such as fenestration, duplications, and persistent fetal arteries, plays a crucial role in the diagnosis and therapeutic management of acute stroke. However, the opposite is also true. In fact, sometimes it is the clinical picture that allows weighing how relevant or not the alteration found is. Therefore, in this review, a concise representation of the clinical picture attributable to a given arterial vessel will be included.

The Anterior Inferior Cerebral Artery Variability in the Context of Neurovascular Compression Syndromes: A Narrative Review

“…The supply area of AICA includes the middle cerebellar peduncle, the anterolateral portion of the pons, the superolateral part of the medulla oblongata, the anteroinferior part of the cerebellum, the flocculus and the choroid plexus at the lateral aperture of the fourth ventricle. AICA usually supplies the following nuclei: trigeminal, facial, vestibular, and cochlear [19,24]. The labyrinthine artery supplies the peripheral audiovestibular structures of the inner ear, along with the facial and vestibulocochlear nerves [25,26].…”