Cerebral venous thrombosis: continental disparities

Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) usually accounts for < 1% of all strokes. Global disparity and diversity in their demographics, etiology, clinical features, radiological presentation, and mortality have not been previously explored. A systematic search was performed for publications in PubMed using key words "cerebral venous thrombosis," "Cerebral vein thrombosis," and "Cortical vein Thrombosis." A total of 600 relevant studies were abstracted with strict selection criteria, and a total of 7048 patient's data were used for the final analysis. The frequency and relative frequency statistics were used to describe the data. Cases reported were Europe-3152, Asia-2722, North America-852, Africa-122, Australia-121, and South America-79. Overall male to female ratio was 1:2.2; among clinical characteristics, headache was the most common symptom and hematological factors were the most common etiology. Location of the thrombosis was described mostly in the transverse sinus. Intercontinental differences in relation to demographics, etiology, clinical features, radiological presentation, and mortality were identified. CVT can have significant disparity in their demographics, etiology, clinical features, radiological presentation, and mortality when compared from one continent to other. It is important for the worldwide physicians to recognize these differences and to follow the most recent guidelines, diagnostic methods, and treatment to insure the best outcome and prognosis.