Perinatal stroke: mechanisms, management, and outcomes of early cerebrovascular brain injury

Abstract

Perinatal stroke encompasses a heterogeneous group of focal neurological injuries early in brain development that probably affects more than 5 million people worldwide. Many such injuries are symptomatic in the first days of life, including neonatal arterial ischaemic stroke, cerebral sinovenous thrombosis, and neonatal haemorrhagic stroke. The remaining focal neurological injuries usually present later in the first year with motor asymmetry, such as arterial presumed perinatal ischaemic stroke, periventricular venous infarction, and presumed perinatal haemorrhagic stroke. The numerous sequelae of these injuries include hemiparesis (cerebral palsy), epilepsy, and cognitive, language, and behavioural challenges. In this Review we summarise each perinatal stroke disease, examining the epidemiology, pathophysiology, acute management, and outcomes, including the effect on parents and families, and emerging therapies to mitigate these lifelong morbidities.