Floating Thrombus in the Innominate Artery as a Cause of Cerebral Infarction in Young Adults

Intraluminal thrombi in the carotid circulation are uncommonly reported as a cause of stroke in young adults. We report two young women who suffered an embolic cerebral infarction from a floating thrombus in the innominate artery, without clotting abnormalities. Intraluminal thrombus at that level may have been previously overlooked as a cause of embolic cerebral infarction in young patients, because of the lack of a systematic assessment of the aortic arch and its proximal branches. Taking into account the fact that the evolution may be rapidly fatal, this possibility should be considered early in young patients without a clear etiology of stroke.