Pediatric ischemic stroke – an unlikely diagnosis: a report of three cases

Pediatric ischemic stroke is a rare and devastating disease. A patient presenting with acute neurological deficit should raise suspicion of a possible stroke. However, stroke "mimics" account for a majority of suspected stroke cases in childhood. We present three cases of pediatric acute ischemic stroke, two of which are arterial, and one caused by thrombosis of venous sinuses. In the first case, we present a 16-year old male patient was admitted to our hospital due to a rare Artery of Percheron occlusion. The second case represents a 17-year old female patient with thrombosis of multiple cerebral venous sinuses, venous infarctions and secondary hemorrhages. As the third case, we present 6-year old male patient with a herpes simplex infection and a vertebrobasilar stroke. All three patients had experienced an altered mental status and other nonspecific symptoms. Due to its rarity, diverse clinical presentation, and lack of randomized control trials regarding treatment, ischemic stroke poses a great challenge to pediatricians.