Carotid Body Tumor: Unusual Cause of Transient Ischemic Attacks

Carotid body tumors are an unusual cause of transient ischemic attacks. The cases reported in the literature have been limited to the postoperative period. We report a patient with bilateral carotid body tumors and transient ischemic attacks as the presenting syndrome. A low-perfusion state could explain his symptomatology. (Stroke 1988;19:102-103) Carotid body tumors (CBTs) are not commonlyfound in clinical practice. They usually arenoted as a painless mass laterally placed in the neck and sometimes with cranial nerve involvement; dizziness and headache have also been described. We have not found any report in the literature with tran-sient ischemic attacks as a presenting syndrome. Case Report A 61-year-old man came to the emergency room having complained for the previous 2 hours of pares-thesias in his right arm and face and difficulty in speak-ing correctly. The patient had also experienced local neck discomfort for the previous 15 years on turnin