Isolated hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy associated with preeclampsia in late pregnancy: a case report
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Kaur, Sandeep
Chauhan, Akashdeep Singh
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
Neurological complications in preeclampsia are uncommon and typically central in origin. Cranial mononeuropathies, especially involving the hypoglossal nerve, are exceedingly rare.
Case presentation
We report a case of isolated hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy in a 31-year-old, Indian, primigravida at 37 weeks of gestation with preeclampsia. The patient presented with mild dysphagia and dysarthria. Neurological examination revealed tongue deviation to the right, suggestive of left hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, including T1/T2-weighted sequences, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery, and diffusion-weighted imaging with apparent diffusion coefficient sequences, and magnetic resonance angiography, followed by contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of the neck and oral cavity, showed no infarct, hemorrhage, mass lesion, or compressive pathology. The patient was managed conservatively with blood pressure optimization, and symptoms resolved completely within 90 days postpartum.
Conclusion
At least four cases of hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy associated with preeclampsia have been reported in literature. This case adds to the emerging evidence that cranial mononeuropathies may represent a rare but important neurological manifestation of preeclampsia and highlights the need for urgent neuroimaging and careful blood pressure control in pregnant and/or postpartum patients presenting with bulbar symptoms.
Neurological complications in preeclampsia are uncommon and typically central in origin. Cranial mononeuropathies, especially involving the hypoglossal nerve, are exceedingly rare.
Case presentation
We report a case of isolated hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy in a 31-year-old, Indian, primigravida at 37 weeks of gestation with preeclampsia. The patient presented with mild dysphagia and dysarthria. Neurological examination revealed tongue deviation to the right, suggestive of left hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, including T1/T2-weighted sequences, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery, and diffusion-weighted imaging with apparent diffusion coefficient sequences, and magnetic resonance angiography, followed by contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of the neck and oral cavity, showed no infarct, hemorrhage, mass lesion, or compressive pathology. The patient was managed conservatively with blood pressure optimization, and symptoms resolved completely within 90 days postpartum.
Conclusion
At least four cases of hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy associated with preeclampsia have been reported in literature. This case adds to the emerging evidence that cranial mononeuropathies may represent a rare but important neurological manifestation of preeclampsia and highlights the need for urgent neuroimaging and careful blood pressure control in pregnant and/or postpartum patients presenting with bulbar symptoms.
Date Issued
2026-12-01
Date Acceptance
2026-01-31
Citation
Journal of Medical Case Reports, 2026, 20 (1)
ISSN
1752-1947
Publisher
BMC
Journal / Book Title
Journal of Medical Case Reports
Volume
20
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2026. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
10.1186/s13256-026-05935-x
Subjects
Neuroimaging
Pregnancy Complications
Proteinuria
Cranial mononeuropathy
Hypoglossal nerve mononeuropathy
Preeclampsia
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 232
Date Publish Online
2026-03-23