Thrombolytic therapy and posterior circulation extracranial-intracranial bypass for acute basilar artery thrombosis. Case report.

Basilar artery thrombosis has a very poor prognosis. A 56-year-old comatose man with acute basilar artery occlusion was successfully treated with local urokinase infusion which reopened the basilar artery and revealed a midbasilar stenotic plaque. This procedure was followed by a superficial temporal artery to superior cerebellar artery anastomosis for protection of the posterior circulation.