Stroke Mimics – Glioblastoma Presenting with Hemorrhage after Thrombolysis: Case Report

Abstract

Background Stroke is a clinical syndrome characterized by a sudden-onset neurological deficit of vascular cause. Stroke-like clinical symptoms that are later found to have nonvascular disorders have been termed stroke mimics (MIM), and their incidence ranges from 1.3 to 25% in patients not treated with thrombolytic therapy. Eventually, intravenous thrombolysis of MIM may occur. Case Description We describe a 74-year-old woman with abrupt global aphasia who received thrombolytic therapy after the presumed diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke. She gradually improved despite the finding of an asymptomatic left temporal hematoma on the computed tomography (CT) scan. Two months later, she presented with a new focal neurological deficit and was diagnosed with a glioblastoma in the topography of the previous bleeding. Conclusion This case highlights the rare occurrence of hemorrhage after thrombolysis in patients with MIM.