General Medical Information

Thrombosis of the Anterior Spinal Artery

Frank E. Lucente
Samir Shah
Roger Kula

Thrombosis of the anterior spinal artery affects the pyramids and emerging hypoglossal fibers. It is associated with hemianesthetic hemiplegia or with hypoglossal hemiplegia. There is a contralateral loss of proprioception and a decrease in tactile sensation. This may spare the hypoglossal nerve. Another result of anterior spinal artery thrombosis is hemiplegia cruciata, a lesion of the decussation of the pyramid. The patient has contralateral and ipsilateral spastic paresis of the lower extremities, may have ipsilateral flaccid paresis and atrophy of the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles, and may have ipsilateral paresis of the tongue.