Cerebral aneurysm surgery
|
Cerebral aneurysm Microchapters |
|
Diagnosis |
|---|
|
Treatment |
|
Case Studies |
|
Cerebral aneurysm surgery On the Web |
|
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Cerebral aneurysm surgery |
|
Risk calculators and risk factors for Cerebral aneurysm surgery |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Anika Zahoor M.D.[2]
Overview
Emergency treatment for individuals with a ruptured cerebral aneurysm generally includes restoring deteriorating respiration and reducing intracranial pressure. Currently there are two treatment options for brain aneurysms. Either surgical clipping or endovascular coiling is usually performed within the first three days to occlude the ruptured aneurysm and reduce the risk of rebleeding.
Surgery
Surgical Clipping
Surgical clipping was introduced by Walter Dandy of the Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1937. It consists of performing a craniotomy, exposing the aneurysm, and closing the base of the aneurysm with a clip. The surgical technique has been modified and improved over the years. Surgical clipping has a lower rate of aneurysm recurrence after treatment. Either surgical clipping or endovascular coiling is usually performed within the first three days to occlude the ruptured aneurysm and reduce the risk of rebleeding.
Endovascular Coiling
This was introduced by Guido Guglielmi at UCLA in 1991. It consists of passing a catheter into the femoral artery in the groin, through the aorta, into the brain arteries, and finally into the aneurysm itself. Once the catheter is in the aneurysm, platinum coils are pushed into the aneurysm and released. These coils initiate a clotting or thrombotic reaction within the aneurysm that, if successful, will eliminate the aneurysm. In the case of broad-based aneurysms, a stent is passed first into the parent artery to serve as a scaffold for the coils ("stent-assisted coiling").Either surgical clipping or endovascular coiling is usually performed within the first three days to occlude the ruptured aneurysm and reduce the risk of rebleeding.
At this point it appears that the risks associated with surgical clipping and endovascular coiling, in terms of stroke or death from the procedure, are the same. The major problem associated with endovascular coiling, however, is a higher aneurysm recurrence rate. For instance, the most recent study by Jacques Moret and colleagues from Paris, France, (a group with one of the largest experiences in endovascular coiling) indicates that 28.6% of aneurysms recurred within one year of coiling, and that the recurrence rate increased with time. [1] These results are similar to those previously reported by other endovascular groups. For instance Jean Raymond and colleagues from Montreal, Canada, (another group with a large experience in endovascular coiling) reported that 33.6% of aneurysms recurred within one year of coiling. [2] The long-term coiling results of one of the two prospective, randomized studies comparing surgical clipping versus endovascular coiling, namely the International Subarachnoid Aneurysm Trial (ISAT) are turning out to be similarly worrisome. In ISAT, the need for late retreatment of aneurysms was 6.9 times more likely for endovascular coiling as compared to surgical clipping. [3]
Therefore it appears that although endovascular coiling is associated with a shorter recovery period as compared to surgical clipping, it is also associated with a significantly higher recurrence rate after treatment. It is unclear, however, whether the higher recurrence rate translates into a higher rebleeding rate, as the data thus far do not show a difference in the rate of recurrent hemorrhage in patients who had aneurysms clipped vs. coiled after rupture. [3] The long-term data for unruptured aneurysms are still being gathered.
Patients who undergo endovascular coiling need to have annual studies (such as MRI/MRA, CTA, or angiography) indefinitely to detect early recurrences. If a recurrence is identified, the aneurysm needs to be retreated with either surgery or further coiling. The risks associated with surgical clipping of previously-coiled aneurysms are very high. Ultimately, the decision to treat with surgical clipping versus endovascular coiling should be made by a cerebrovascular team with extensive experience in both modalities.
References
- ↑ Piotin, M (2007). "Intracranial aneurysms: treatment with bare platinum coils--aneurysm packing, complex coils, and angiographic recurrence". Radiology. 243 (2): 500–8. PMID 17293572. Unknown parameter
|coauthors=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ↑ Raymond, J (2003). "Long-term angiographic recurrences after selective endovascular treatment of aneurysms with detachable coils". Stroke. 34 (6): 1398–1403. PMID 12775880. Unknown parameter
|coauthors=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Campi, A (2007). "Retreatment of ruptured cerebral aneurysms in patients randomized by coiling or
clipping in the International Subarachnoid Aneurysm Trial (ISAT)". Stroke. 38 (5): 1538–1544. PMID 17395870. Unknown parameter
|coauthors=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help); line feed character in|title=at position 80 (help)