Table 1.

Signs and symptoms of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) and location of probable lesion

Signs and symptoms		Probable lesion
Headache	Migraine	Any venous occlusion/focal lesion
	Raised ICP ^a	Large venous or sinus occlusion/large mass lesion
	Thunderclap	Any venous occlusion/subarachnoid haemorrhage
	Ear/mastoid pain	Transverse sinus with/without infection
Focal neurological deficits	Hemiparesis	Infarction/haemorrhage/venous oedema
	Cranial nerve palsy
	III, IV	Cavernous sinus
	V	Cavernous sinus/superior petrosal sinus
	VI	Cavernous sinus/inferior petrosal sinuses/raised ICP
	VII	Transverse/sigmoid sinus
	VIII	Transverse/sigmoid sinus/raised ICP
	IX, X, XI	Posterior cavernous sinus/internal jugular vein/deep venous system
	Aphasia	Focal infarction/haemorrhage/superficial or deep venous system
	Sensory disturbance	Focal infarction/haemorrhage/superficial or deep venous system
	Inattention/neglect	Focal infarction/haemorrhage/superficial venous system
	Ataxia	Cerebellar veins/raised ICP
Seizures	Focal	Focal infarction/haemorrhage
	Generalised	Focal infarction/haemorrhage/severely raised ICP
Visual disturbance	Reduced acuity	Raised ICP
	Reduced/altered visual field	Raised ICP/Posterior infarction/haemorrhage/raised ICP (false localising sign)
	Diplopia	Cavernous sinus/petrosal sinus/raised ICP
	Papilloedema	Raised ICP
Meningism	Neck pain/stiffness	Suggests infectious or inflammatory aetiology
	Photophobia
Reduced consciousness	Drowsiness	Deep venous system/straight sinus/raised ICP/non-convulsive status epilepticus
	Stupor
	Coma
Cognitive impairment	Encephalopathy	Deep venous system/temporal-parietal lesion (vein of Labbe)/seizures
	Disorientation
	Reduced concentration
	Amnesia

↵^aRaised intracranial pressure (ICP) can result from a combination of a large venous/sinus occlusion or from large infarction/haemorrhage.