Clinical features and imaging findings in patients with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis at Kenyatta National Hospital

Abstract

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is an uncommon cause of stroke, which over the past 10 to 15 years has been diagnosed more frequently due to greater awareness and the availability of better non-invasive diagnostic techniques (3). It shows a wide range of clinical manifestations that may mimic many other neurological disorders and lead to misdiagnosis (2). Imaging plays a key role in the diagnosis. Accurate and prompt diagnosis of cerebral venous thrombosis is crucial, because timely and appropriate therapy can reverse the disease process and significantly reduce the risk of acute complications and long-term sequelae. Objective To review the clinical presentation and patterns of neuroimaging studies in patients with CYST as seen at Kenyatta National Hospital. Study Design and setting A retrospective cross sectional descriptive study conducted at KNH. Subjects included records of all patients treated for CYST in Kenyatta National Hospital for the past 5 years. Methodology Clinical and imaging records of all patients treated for CYST in the 5 year period from September 2006 to September 2011 were reviewed. Imaging studies of CT scan, MRI or MRV, images were obtained from the records and reviewed for each patient. Data was cleaned and entered into STATA version 11 and analyzed. Results are presented in tables, pie charts and histograms. RESULTS A total of 51 patients with CYST were seen with median age of 30 years. The most common age group affected was 25-34 years all of them being females. Females were more affected