Haemiballism/haemichorea: an atypical presentation of ischaemic stroke.

Journal Article (Journal Article)

A 76-year-old man was admitted to the hospital with acute onset of involuntary movements of the left side of his body. His neurological examination revealed he was oriented only to himself, and aforementioned movements of his left arm and leg. CT head demonstrated old infarcts in his right aspect of his pons and basal ganglia. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis was unremarkable. He initially had a normal blood glucose with an elevated anion gap and elevated creatine kinase. Brain MRI showed a small lacunar-type ischaemic infarct within the anteromedial aspect of the right cerebral peduncle, which localised to his haemiballism. To prevent worsening rhabdomyolysis associated with his haemiballism, the primary team initiated both tetrabenazine and diazepam. His movements improved after 1 week of medication therapy. This report discusses a thorough workup for this movement disorder and when to intervene for this distressing condition.

Full Text

Duke Authors

Cited Authors

  • Nohria, R; Bennett, S; O'Keefe, YA

Published Date

  • June 4, 2021

Published In

Volume / Issue

  • 14 / 6

PubMed ID

  • 34088684

Pubmed Central ID

  • PMC8183265

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 1757-790X

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1136/bcr-2020-240439

Language

  • eng

Conference Location

  • England