Cervical Artery Dissection

Abstract Cervical artery dissections are common, yet they are an uncommon cause of stroke and other cerebrovascular complications. However, they are an important cause of strokes in the young, accounting for up to 25% of strokes in those under 45 years of age. The mainstay of therapy for cervical artery dissections is medical management, with a recent trend toward antiplatelet rather than anticoagulation therapy. However, interventional therapies may be indicated in situations of acute dissection with ischemia, recurrent embolism or progressive vessel narrowing despite optimal medical therapy, or in cases of dissecting aneurysms at risk of rupture.