Teaching neuroimages: carotid body tumor as a novel cause of cerebral ischemic stroke.

An 83-year-old man presented with drowsiness, dysarthria, anosognosia, forced right gaze deviation and left hemianopia, hemiplegia, and hemianesthesia consistent with a right hemispheric stroke. A painless, nonpulsatile, right cervical mass was noted. CT angiography demonstrated a right carotid body tumor (CBT) occluding the ipsilateral internal carotid artery (figure) and a fetal-type right posterior cerebral artery. Other etiologies of stroke were excluded. CBTs are rare. They usually affect middle-aged patients with chronic hypoxia and present as a cervical mass with lower cranial nerve palsies.1 CBTs completely surrounding the internal carotid artery should be included among the uncommon causes of stroke.2 AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS