Transcranial Doppler in Childhood Moyamoya: An Underutilized Tool?

Abstract

Background: Children with moyamoya are at high risk for incident and recurrent stroke. Transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound is an attractive option to screen high-risk populations for moyamoya and to provide stroke risk stratification information due to its safety and cost-effectiveness. We used TCD to evaluate cerebral blood flow velocities in children with presurgical moyamoya and to determine if velocities differ between children with stable and unstable disease.

Methods: Fourteen participants aged ≤21 years with a radiographic diagnosis of moyamoya or moyamoya-like arteriopathy underwent a research TCD at a median age of 7.2 years. TCDs were performed outside of the setting of acute stroke and before surgical revascularization. Arteriopathy was classified as unstable if the participant had a stroke or transient ischemic attack within three months preceding the TCD.

Results: Middle cerebral artery and internal carotid artery (ICA) blood flow velocities were elevated. The median M1 velocity was 138 cm/s (interquartile range [IQR] 106 to 168). Individual M1 flow velocities were a median of 5.0 S.D.s above age-based normative values. The median distal ICA velocity was 146 cm/s (IQR 124 to 163). Individual ICA flow velocities were a median of 5.9 S.D.s above normative values. Participants with unstable arteriopathy had higher M1 velocities compared with those with stable arteriopathy (170 vs 119 cm/s, P = 0.0003). We did not identify velocity differences based on comorbid conditions or age.

Conclusions: These preliminary data suggest that TCD is a promising tool for screening for cerebral arteriopathies in high-risk pediatric populations and assessment for unstable disease.

Keywords: Arteriopathy; Ischemic stroke; Moyamoya; Pediatric stroke; Transcranial Doppler.