Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging
Idiopathic carotidynia (IC) is a rare and poorly understood syndrome consisting of unilateral neck pain, tenderness, and increased pulsations over the affected carotid bifurcation. A growing body of evidence supports the hypothesis that IC is a distinct clinicopathologic entity with characteristic i...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2017-01-01
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| Series: | Case Reports in Radiology |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7086854 |
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| author | Corrado Santarosa Salvatore Stefanelli Roman Sztajzel Pravin Mundada Minerva Becker |
| author_facet | Corrado Santarosa Salvatore Stefanelli Roman Sztajzel Pravin Mundada Minerva Becker |
| author_sort | Corrado Santarosa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Idiopathic carotidynia (IC) is a rare and poorly understood syndrome consisting of unilateral neck pain, tenderness, and increased pulsations over the affected carotid bifurcation. A growing body of evidence supports the hypothesis that IC is a distinct clinicopathologic entity with characteristic imaging features. We report the case of a 34-year-old Caucasian male presenting with intense unilateral neck pain in the emergency setting. Computed tomography and ultrasonography revealed fusiform eccentric thickening of the ipsilateral carotid bifurcation without vessel narrowing. Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging depicted major perivascular enhancement without evidence of dissection. Further imaging and laboratory work-up excluded vasculitis. The diagnosis of IC was made. The patient was treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and symptoms and imaging findings disappeared within a few weeks. Cross-sectional imaging allows not only ruling out IC mimickers but also making the correct diagnosis of this rare condition, in particular, as the clinical presentation of IC is often nonspecific. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-314bfff77811440d886b60ebc53cf056 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2090-6862 2090-6870 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2017-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Case Reports in Radiology |
| spelling | doaj-art-314bfff77811440d886b60ebc53cf0562025-02-03T05:50:26ZengWileyCase Reports in Radiology2090-68622090-68702017-01-01201710.1155/2017/70868547086854Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional ImagingCorrado Santarosa0Salvatore Stefanelli1Roman Sztajzel2Pravin Mundada3Minerva Becker4Division of Radiology, Department of Imaging and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Radiology, Department of Imaging and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandClinic of Neurology, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Radiology, Department of Imaging and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Radiology, Department of Imaging and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandIdiopathic carotidynia (IC) is a rare and poorly understood syndrome consisting of unilateral neck pain, tenderness, and increased pulsations over the affected carotid bifurcation. A growing body of evidence supports the hypothesis that IC is a distinct clinicopathologic entity with characteristic imaging features. We report the case of a 34-year-old Caucasian male presenting with intense unilateral neck pain in the emergency setting. Computed tomography and ultrasonography revealed fusiform eccentric thickening of the ipsilateral carotid bifurcation without vessel narrowing. Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging depicted major perivascular enhancement without evidence of dissection. Further imaging and laboratory work-up excluded vasculitis. The diagnosis of IC was made. The patient was treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and symptoms and imaging findings disappeared within a few weeks. Cross-sectional imaging allows not only ruling out IC mimickers but also making the correct diagnosis of this rare condition, in particular, as the clinical presentation of IC is often nonspecific.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7086854 |
| spellingShingle | Corrado Santarosa Salvatore Stefanelli Roman Sztajzel Pravin Mundada Minerva Becker Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging Case Reports in Radiology |
| title | Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging |
| title_full | Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging |
| title_fullStr | Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging |
| title_short | Carotidynia: A Rare Diagnosis for Unilateral Neck Pain Revealed by Cross-Sectional Imaging |
| title_sort | carotidynia a rare diagnosis for unilateral neck pain revealed by cross sectional imaging |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/7086854 |
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