Neurological disorders associated with patent foramen ovale

Abstract

The foramen ovale between the right and left atria remains open in 15–25% of people over 18 years of age and in most of them it does not manifest itself clinically. At the same time, the defect is associated with a number of diseases and conditions: the development of atrial fibrillation, worsening the degree of hypoxemia in patients with pulmonary diseases, etc. There are studies devoted to the influence of a patent foramen ovale on the occurrence and course of cryptogenic stroke, migraine, syncope, dizziness, transient global amnesia, visual impairment and ocular movement disorders. However, the actual contribution of patent foramen ovale to the development of neurological disorders remains a matter of debate. The purpose of this work was to assess the significance of a patent foramen ovale in the development of neurological disorders in adults and children by analyzing literature data for the period from 2012 to 2022. In the process of studying the literature, a high prevalence of the defect was identified among patients with stroke and migraine (especially migraine with aura). At the same time, data from randomized clinical trials in patients with stroke and migraine showed selectively high effectiveness of closure of the patent foramen ovale in certain groups of patients. The association of patent foramen ovale with transient global amnesia, syncope, and dizziness has been confirmed in a limited number of studies. Cases of visual impairment and ocular movement disorders associated with the presence of a patent foramen ovale have been described. Thus, it was concluded that a patent foramen ovale is a risk factor for the development of neurological disorders only in certain groups of patients with stroke and migraine. The connection between the defect and the development of transient global amnesia, syncope, dizziness, visual impairment, as well as the development of neurological pathology in children requires further research.