Following embolization with Guglielmi detachable coils the histomorphological findings and tissue reactions of two cerebral artery aneurysms were examined.
Methods: In order to study GDCs in situ a giant wide-necked aneurysm of the basilar artery (autopsy case; 14 days after embolization) and a resected aneurysm of the middle cerebral artery (resection; 6.5 months after embolization) were embedded in acrylate, cut in thin sections glued on acrylic slides, then grounded to about 10 microm thickness and finally stained with toluidine blue.
Results: With the above-described method GDCs became amenable to histopathologic studies. The coils were more densely packed within the dome than the central lumen. In the resected aneurysm this feature was particularly prominent in that the GDCs were embedded in scarred connective tissue. Few giant cells of the foreign body type were found intimately associated with the GDCs.