An atypical case of head trauma with late onset of contrecoup epidural hematoma, cerebellar contusion, and cerebral infarction in the territory of the recurrent artery of Heubner

Abstract

We encountered a case of head trauma with very unusual delayed events. A 68-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital after receiving a direct impact to her occiput in a traffic accident. Head CT scans showed a thin acute epidural hematoma in the posterior fossa corresponding to a linear fracture, followed by late onset of contrecoup left frontal epidural hematoma and subsequent cerebellar contusion in the right cerebellar hemisphere. Fifteen days after the trauma, the patient developed mild motor weakness of right upper extremity. MRIs demonstrated an infarct in the territory of the left recurrent artery of Heubner. Although rare, atypical late events in patients with head trauma as reported here should be taken into consideration during subacute follow-up periods.