Abstract
Opioid misuse and addiction have led to an opioid epidemic in the United States, with widespread effects on the healthcare system. Opioid-induced cardiovascular morbidity and mortality effects have been extensively described in past literature; however, neurological effects have been described less frequently. Here, we describe a case of a female patient who presented to our center after being found unresponsive with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), revealing bilateral basal ganglia diffuse restriction hyperintensities secondary to a diagnosis of opioid overdose. Opioid overdose-induced bilateral basal ganglia diffusion restriction has only been described infrequently in the literature. Recognizing the associated imaging findings as a potential consequence of opioid overdose is important to avoid unnecessary workups for ischemic stroke.