[Cerebrovascular disease in childhood and adolescence. Ischaemic cerebral accidents].

In recent years attention has been drawn to cerebrovascular disease in children and adolescents, since cases are now better detected and hence there has been an apparent increase in their incidence. The traditional risk factors of adult cerebrovascular disease are considered to be unimportant in children and adolescents. In these young patients there are many other more important risk factors, genetic, metabolic and infections, acting alone or in combination. The most important of these are cardiac disorders, prothrombotic states and vascular disorders. There are many imaging techniques available for the investigation of patients with ischaemic symptoms, which permit early diagnosis using non invasive methods. The newer perfusion diffusion MR techniques may play an important part in evaluation and treatment, especially in patients at risk. Most treatment currently available is symptomatic. However, interventionist neuroradiology may in future play an important part in treatment in this age group. Recent studies have shown that the prognosis is not as good as previously thought and half the patients have motor sequelas and a similar number require special schooling.