Diagnosis


The diagnosis of CVST has to be proven by MRI/MRA, or by X-ray angiography, or by post mortem examination. Patients with cavernous sinus thrombosis will be included. The local investigators will assure that, if necessary, all imaging studies are available for review .

The following diagnostic criteria will be used as guidelines

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For sinus thrombosis:

  1. Angiography: incomplete or absent filling or delayed emptying of one or more sinuses with signs of increased filling of collateral venous pathways. (pitfalls: hypoplasia of anterior part of the superior sagittal sinus (SSS) or of one of the transverse sinuses: duplication of the SSS).
  2. MRI: abnormal signal in one of the sinuses, combined with absence of flow on MRA (pitfalls: flow related artifacts on MRI; different signal abnormalities depending on age of the thrombus).

Patients with isolated cerebral vein thrombosis are to be included, if the diagnosis can be made reliably according to the following criteria:

  1. Angiography: absent filling preferably combined with signs of dilated collateral veins; "stop" sign; filling of previously non-filling vein on repeated angiogram (pitfalls: anatomical variation of cortical veins).
  2. MRI/MRA: as indural sinus thrombosis.

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Last modified:
 22/01/03.