Chronic subdural hematoma clinical features
Chronic subdural hematoma has been referred to as the “great neurologic imitator” as it can mimic many neurological conditions.
They typically present with intracranial hypertension clinical features
The precise pattern of signs and symptoms in a given patient with chronic subdural may vary from case to case depending upon the specific anatomy of compression, but isolated lower extremity weakness is rare 1).
They can present in many different unusual ways including bilateral complete paraplegia and acute urinary retention mimicking acute spinal cord pathology. The exact mechanism of this clinical presentation is not clear and may be due to direct compression of the motor cortex to the falx or due to compression of the anterior cerebral artery due to subfalcine herniation 2).
Chronic subdural hematoma may have a presentation similar to that of Parkinson's disease 3) 4).
Patients with unilateral chronic subdural hematoma had a more frequent occurrence of hemiparesis than the patients with bilateral chronic subdural hematoma. It took the left-sided chronic subdural hematomas less time (about 200 hours earlier) than the right-sided ones to present their symptoms although the average hematoma diameter value was almost the same.
The site and the form of intracranial lesion-chronic subdural hematoma could have a great influence on neurological and functional conditions in a patient. Although the length of time required for making the diagnosis as well as clinical symptoms greatly differ and the latter are not always so clear, physicians should maintain a high level of suspicion for this disease and thus contribute to prompt diagnosis and better clinical outcomes of patients 5).