A coronal section through the brain at the level of the caudate nucleus and putamen. The arrow points to hemorrhagic infarction of the putamen and caudate nucleus. The overlying cerebral cortex and white matter is also involved but the hemorrhagic part of a hemorrhagic infarct is usually confined to the grey matter. Note how swollen the affected hemisphere is, with herniation of structures across the midline.
Most hemorrhagic infarcts are due to emboli.
Cerebral infarcts are due to occlusion of an artery by a thrombus or embolus effectively cutting off nutrients and oxygen to the area fed by the artery. The most comman cause of cerebral infarct is due to atherosclerosis of cerebral and coronary arteries which is related to age, smoking, hypertension, serum lipids and cholesterol, and diabetes. Stroke is a common cause of death and disablility in patients over 55 but can be seen younger individuals as well. The brain shows tannish discoloration and swelling as well as softening in the area of the pale infarct. In the hemorrhagic infarct, the grey matter will show multiple petechial hemmorrhages in the area affected.