Takayasu's arteritis: transcranial Doppler findings and follow-up.

Takayasu's arteritis is an inflammatory disease that produces a narrowing of the aorta and its major branches. The transcranial doppler findings and its value have not been clearly determined. We describe a patient with a history of orthostatic syncopal attacks, and transitory ischemic attacks. Arteriography showed severe narrowings and occlusions of multiple large branches of the aortic arch. Transcranial doppler showed a low flow velocity in both middle cerebral arteries, low pulsatility index and damping in the waveform. After surgery, transcranial doppler ipsilateral to the graft became almost normal and the collateralization pattern had changed. This case provides further evidence that the Takayasu's arteritis leads to relevant changes in the transcranial doppler waveform and that this technique can help in the follow-up of these patients.