[Secondary cerebral vasculitis in suppurative meningitis. Clinical aspects and findings in color-coded transcranial duplex ultrasound].

Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography carried out in cases of bacterial meningitis has often shown a reversible increase in blood flow velocity in basal cerebral arteries, that is interpreted as caused by segmental vasospasm brought on by vasculitis. We report for the first time on findings of transcranial colour-coded duplex ultrasonography performed on a patient with pneumococcal meningitis who suffered a subcortical infarction in the territory of the right middle cerebral artery. Doppler ultrasonography revealed an increase in blood flow velocity of the right middle basal cerebral artery, while the B-scan revealed thickening of the main trunk on the right. These findings suggest an inflammatory thickening of the blood vessel wall with secondary narrowing of the lumen as a result of secondary vasculitis.