ABSTRACT
Objective:To analyze the safety and efficacy of endovascular treatment in fusiform aneurysms at V4 segment of vertebral artery.Methods:Twenty-five patients with fusiform aneurysms at V4 segment of vertebral artery, accepted endovascular treatment in Department of Cerebrovascular Diseases, Second Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University from May 2016 to January 2022 were chosen; their clinical data were retrospectively analyzed. The short-term (within one month of surgery) and long-term (>8 months of surgery) complications were evaluated, including aneurysm re-bleeding and ischemic stroke. All patients were followed up for 3-21 months; aneurysm recurrence and parent arteries were evaluated by DSA. The prognosis of patients was evaluated by modified Rankin scale (mRS) at the last follow-up (mRS scores of 0-2 as good prognosis).Results:Twenty-six aneurysms involved in 25 patients, including 13 ruptured aneurysms and 13 un-ruptured aneurysms; 7 aneurysms were located at the dominant vertebral artery and 7 aneurysms involved in the origin of posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA). In these 13 ruptured aneurysms, 6 (46.15%) were treated with parent artery sacrifice and 7 (53.85%) were with stent-assisted coil embolization; in 13 un-ruptured aneurysms, 9 (69.23%) were treated with stent-assisted coil embolization and 4 (30.77%) were with flow diversion devices (Tubridge). Seven aneurysms (43.75%) used multi-stent in these 16 aneurysms accepted stent-assisted coil embolization. No short-term and long-term re-bleeding or ischemic stroke were noted in all patients. Twenty patients completed DSA follow-up, with a median follow-up time of 8 months; 3 patients had recurrent aneurysms and one had asymptomatic stent occlusion. All 25 patients completed the last follow-up (telephone or outpatient follow-up) in May 2022, and 24 had good prognosis.Conclusion:According to characteristics of dominant vertebral artery and relations between aneurysms and PICA, individualized endovascular treatment can be safe and effective in fusiform aneurysms at V4 segment of vertebral artery.