Angiographic findings and clinical implications of persistent primitive hypoglossal artery

Abstract

Abstract Background The primitive hypoglossal artery (PHA) is a rare vascular anomaly, which belongs to the group of carotid-basilar anastomosis that may occur in adults. Case presentation Herein is presented a case of a patient with a PHA, who had undergone a cerebral angiography due to investigation of subarachnoid hemorrhage. Additionally, the diagnostic alternatives for detection and assessment of PHA and the spectrum of diseases related to its presence are discussed. Conclusions The presence of a persistent PHA can be recognized as an incidental finding in a cerebral angiography without any other clinical implication or may be associated with certain clinical entities such as aneurysm formation and atherosclerotic disease.

Keywords

• primitive hypoglossal artery
• segmental arteries
• dorsoventral anastomosis