Abstract:Objective To analyze the relationship between the degree of middle cerebral artery (MCA) stenosis and different patterns of acute cerebral infarction.Methods Three hundred and twenty-four patients were analyzed retrospectively. According to magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging and magnetic resonance angiograph, the degree of MCA stenosis was divided into mild, moderate, and severe, and the patterns of cerebral infarction included single cerebral infarction including: small perforating artery infarction (SPAI), large perforating artery infarction (LPAI), pial infarction (PI), and large territory infarction (LTI)), cerebral watershed infarction (CWI), and multiple cerebral infarction (MCI). The degree of MCA stenosis was compared between patients with different patterns of acute cerebral infarction.Results Perforating artery infarction (PAI) caused by MCA stenosis was most common in the 324 patients, accounting for 42.28% (137 cases). There was a significant difference in the incidence of severe MCA stenosis between patients with PAI and patients with the other patterns of single cerebral infarction, MCI, or internal watershed infarction (IWI) (P<0.01). The incidence of severe MCA stenosis in patients with IWI, MCI or LTI was significantly higher than that in patients with SPAI, LPAI, PI, or external watershed infarction (P<0.05); however, there was no significant difference in the incidence of severe MCA stenosis between patients with IWI, MCI, and LTI (P>0.05).Conclusions MCA stenosis-induced PAI is most common, but severe MCA stenosis is essential for PAI. Severe MCA stenosis is likely to induce CWI (especially IWI) or MCI, and it is also one of the important reasons for LTI.