Ultrasound images of rare diseases of the head and neck vasculature

Abstract

A variety of vascular diseases are encountered in the clinical setting in Japan. Vascular diseases of the head and neck include both those that are infrequently encountered even if their names are familiar and those that are extremely rare. A typical example of the former is vasculitis, and an anatomical anomaly is a typical example of the latter. Forms of vasculitis one should be aware of are Takayasu’s arteritis and giant cell arteritis, which are types of large-vessel vasculitis. In the case of pathophysiologies that involve mainly the intracranial arteries, such as moyamoya disease, distinctive findings may be observed when the cervical arteries are affected. In addition, there are relatively rare pathophysiologies in the area of the vertebral arteries, such as vertebral artery dissection and bow hunter’s syndrome. Rarer diseases include internal carotid artery aplasia, carotidynia, and false aneurysm of the carotid artery. When these rare diseases are encountered, steps should be taken to ensure that video is utilized to obtain clear images.