Basilar Artery Embolism Mimicking Transient Global Amnesia in a 61-Year-Old Female: A Case Report

Abstract

Transient global amnesia (TGA) is a self-limiting neurological condition that temporarily affects patients’ ability to access and store memories. So far, its etiology is unknown; however, ischemic origin has been discussed in the past. We present the case of a 61-year-old female with clinical appearance of TGA. MRI and duplex scan revealed punctiform and patchy ischemic lesions in both temporal lobes and right vertebral artery dissection, suggesting basilar artery embolism as the underlying cause. Our case report shows that TGA can be a symptom of ischemic lesions in the hippocampus and patients with presentation of additional focal neurologic symptoms or atypical distribution or appearance of the diffusion-weighted image (multiple/patchy) lesions should get ischemic stroke diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords

• cerebrovascular ischemia
• transient global amnesia
• cns diseases
• dissection
• duplex sonography
• doppler sonography