A case of vertebral dissection probably due to trauma during golf exercise

Abstract

We report a 38-year-old man who developed lateral medullary syndrome and vertebral artery dissection, probably as a complication of neck rotation during golf exercise. He noticed pain in the neck, after golf exercise for 4 hours. Two hours later, he had numbness in the left hand and ataxic gait, followed by hiccups. On the 4th day when he was admitted to our hospital, he showed right lateral medullary syndrome. On the 5th day, right vertebral angiography disclosed an irregular wall (string signs) from the V3 portion of the vertebral artery to the junction of both vertebral arteries, which disappeared on the 56 th day. We therefore diagnosed the patient as traumatic vertebral dissection due to quick rotation and/ or extension of the neck and head during golf exercise.