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AJNR - American Journal of Neuroradiology

Published ahead of print on May 27, 2009
doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A1621

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American Journal of Neuroradiology 30:1518-1523, September 2009
© 2009 American Society of Neuroradiology

INTERVENTIONAL

Endovascular Strategies for Vertebrobasilar Dissecting Aneurysms

S.-C. Jin^a, D.H. Kwon^a, C.-G. Choi^b, J.S. Ahn^a and B.-D. Kwun^a

^aFrom the Departments of Neurological Surgery (S.-C.J., D.H.K., J.S.A., B.-D.K.)
^bRadiology (C.-G.C.), University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.

Please address correspondence to Do Hoon Kwon, MD, Asan Medical Center, 388-1, Poongnap-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 138-736, Korea; e-mail: ykwon{at}amc.seoul.kr

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Dissecting vertebrobasilar aneurysms are challenging to treat, and standard treatment modalities remain controversial. We retrospectively evaluated our experience using endovascular techniques to treat these aneurysms.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: From February 1997 to December 2007, 42 patients with intradural vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms underwent endovascular treatment. Twenty-nine patients had ruptured aneurysms, and 13 patients had unruptured dissecting aneurysms. The endovascular modalities for vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms were the following: 1) trapping (n = 30), 2) proximal occlusion (n = 3), 3) stent with coil (n = 6), and 4) stent alone (n = 3).

RESULTS: Seventeen of the 29 patients with ruptured vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms had successful outcomes without procedural complications following endovascular treatment. Procedure-related complications were the following: 1) rebleeding (n = 3), 2) posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) territory infarction (n = 6), 3) brain stem infarction (n = 2), and 4) thromboembolism-related multiple infarctions (n = 1). Clinical outcomes were favorable in 32 patients (76.1%). There were 3 (7.1%) procedure-related mortalities due to rebleeding, and 1 (2.4%) non-procedure-related mortality due to pneumonia sepsis. All 13 patients with unruptured vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms had favorable clinical and radiologic outcomes without procedure-related complications.

CONCLUSIONS: Endovascular procedures for treatment of unruptured symptomatic dissecting aneurysms resulted in favorable outcomes. Ruptured vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms are associated with a high risk of periprocedural complications. Risks can be managed by using appropriate endovascular techniques according to aneurysm location, configuration, and relationship with the PICA.