Cerebral infarct secondary to traumatic carotid artery dissection

Internal carotid artery dissection is an important cause of ischemic stroke in children and young patients. Children presenting with gross neurological abnormalities after blunt trauma to the head or neck should be considered to have sustained injury to the carotid arteries until proven otherwise. Treatment options include observation, anticoagulation and endovascular stenting, and aggressive surgical repair of the carotid artery injury. We present the case of a 7-year-old boy who had a dissection of his right internal carotid artery after a dangerous position of head upside down from a water slide.