Long term neurological sequela of isolated infarctions according to the topographic areas of thalamus

Abstract

Background/aim: Thalamus infarctions presented with various clinical findings are considered to be related to classical and variative infarction areas. In our study, we aimed to compare the sequela clinical findings of patients with isolated thalamus infarction according to anatomical areas.Methods: 70 patients diagnosed with isolated thalamus infarction in our clinic between 2010 and 2020 were included in the study. The infarction areas of the patients were divided into groups by the radiologist, including the variative areas to the classical areas using magnetic resonance imaging. Neurological examinations were performed and recorded. Sequela clinical findings of the groups were compared. Results:The mean age of all patients was 64.49 ± 13.75 (range between: 33-81) years, and the female ratio was 52.9% (n: 33). Inferolateral area infarction was detected most commonly. The most common complaints were sensory complaints (48.6%), speech disorders (20%), limb weakness (15.7%). There were no significant association between the neurological examination findings of classical and variative area infarctions of patients whose most common admission complaint is sensory deficits (p <0.05), and significant signs of cognitive impairment were detected in the anterior area compared to other areas (p<0.001). It can be considered that cognitive impairment we detected in the anterior area developed due to its associations. Conclusions:In our study where sequela findings were evaluated, the absence of a significant difference in neurological examination findings can be explained by the decline of many acute clinical findings over time.

Cognitive recovery in patients with post-stroke subjective cognitive complaints

“…Further exploration is required to identify component responsible for the beneficial effect of coffee, such as caffeine and phenolic acids, to develop medication for improving cognitive abilities after stroke. Ample literature has consistently showed acute and long-term cognitive disorders ( 31 – 34 ) despite initial improvements ( 35 ) in patients with thalamic stroke, which is possibly attributed to impairments of frontal lobe-related functions. In this study, we found thalamus infarctions were associated with cognitive recovery in the early phase after stroke among patients with post-stroke SCC.…”

“…In this study, we found thalamus infarctions were associated with cognitive recovery in the early phase after stroke among patients with post-stroke SCC. These patients with thalamic stroke presented with early cognitive improvements, perhaps because infarction areas of almost all patients were not in the anterior area ( 33 , 34 ), and seven patients had right-sided lesions in 10 subjects with objective cognitive recovery ( 32 , 35 ). However, there was no appropriate explanation for this observation due to lack of long-term investigation and the detail of neuroimaging data.…”