Fabry disease presenting as bilateral medial medullary infarction with a “heart appearance” sign: a case report

BACKGROUND: The etiologic determinants of cryptogenic stroke remain a diagnostic challenge in clinical practice. Fabry disease (FD) is one of the monogenic causes of stroke that may remain unrecognized as a potential contributing causative factor, because of its rarity and difficulty in diagnosis. We report a case with rare bilateral medial medullary infarction manifesting as “heart appearance” who was diagnosed with FD. CASE PRESENTATION: A 51-year-old Chinese man presented with acute dysarthria and mild tetraparesis. In the 24 h following admission, the patient rapidly developed progressive flaccid quadriplegia and tongue weakness, necessitating ventilator support. Immediate magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed heart-shaped appearance of bilateral medial medullary infarction. The patient suffered two new subcortical infarcts 40 days after the first. Detailed Family history and physical examination indicated symptoms consistent with FD, which was confirmed by very low alpha galactosidase A levels and a missense mutation of the alpha-galactosidase A gene. CONCLUSIONS: We report what appears to be the first case of FD manifesting as bilateral medial medullary infarction. Our case suggests that clinicians should consider the possibility of FD in patients with cryptogenic stroke, especially when combined with infarction in the vertebrobasilar artery system, renal insufficiency, or cardiomyopathy. A detailed analysis of subtle historical clues and performing a complete physical examination on stroke patients would help promote earlier diagnosis of FD.