Hypoplasia of the basilar artery. Three case reports.

Three patients, aged 65, 70, and 80 years, respectively, with hypoplastic basilar artery are presented. To our knowledge no similar case has been reported in the literature till now. In one of the cases, the hypoplasia of the basilar artery was an incidental finding. The other two patients had transient neurological symptoms considered characteristic of circulatory insufficiency in the vertebrobasilar system. One of the latter two patients died of acute myocardial infarction and the other patient died after developing occlusion in the cervical part of the right internal carotid artery. The exact nature of hypoplastic basilar artery is uncertain. The possible mechanisms of its occurrence are discussed.