Neurosurgical "Squeeze Play": Single Incision with Dual Ipsilateral Craniotomies Versus 2 Separate Approaches for Intracranial Aneurysm Treatment.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with bilateral, multiple intracranial aneurysms (IA) can be safely treated using 1 lateral craniotomy. However, in patients with an additional pericallosal artery (PcaA) or distal anterior cerebral artery (ACA) aneurysm, an interhemispheric approach through a bifrontal craniotomy is needed. We investigated the safety of a single incision with dual ipsilateral craniotomies ("squeeze play") and compared results with 2 separate staged surgeries. METHODS: Retrospective data collection and analysis was performed of all cases of multiple IAs including a PcaA or complex ACA aneurysm between 1997 and 2016. Univariate statistical analysis was performed to compare radiologic and clinical outcomes. RESULTS: Both the squeeze play group (n = 12) and the control group (n = 16) showed similar female gender and mean age distribution, with a higher mean aneurysm number in the squeeze play group. Indication for surgery was mainly subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) for the control group (12/16). Mean aneurysm diameter of the largest aneurysm treated with the lateral craniotomy was higher in the squeeze play group (15.8 vs. 4.7 mm, P = 0.005), with comparable craniotomy types between both groups. Cumulative estimated blood loss was higher in the control group, with a comparable cumulative operating room time, reoperation rate, and favorable clinical outcome in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Single-staged surgery with a single incision and dual ipsilateral craniotomies is a safe treatment for multiple unruptured aneurysms that include PcaA and distal ACA aneurysms. The squeeze play results in clinical and radiologic outcomes comparable with those in a 2-staged control group. In the setting of SAH, 2-staged surgery with a recovery interval is preferred to prevent bilateral manipulation of the acutely injured brain.

Clinical utility and cost analysis of routine postoperative head CT in elective aneurysm clippings.

OBJECTIVE Postoperative head CT scanning is performed routinely at the authors' institution on all neurosurgical patients after elective aneurysm clippings. The goal of this study was to determine how often these scans influence medical management and to quantify the associated imaging costs. METHODS The authors reviewed the medical records and accounting database of 304 patients who underwent elective (i.e., nonruptured) aneurysm clipping performed by 1 surgeon (M.T.L.) from 2010 to 2014 at the University of California, San Francisco. Specifically, the total number of postoperative head CT scans, radiographic findings, and the effect of these studies on patient management were determined. The authors obtained the total hospital costs for these patients, including the cost of imaging studies, from the hospital accounting database. RESULTS Overall, postoperative CT findings influenced clinical management in 3.6% of cases; specifically, they led to permissive hypertension in 4 patients for possible ischemia, administration of mannitol for edema and high-flow oxygen for pneumocephalus in 2 patients each, seizure prophylaxis in 1 patient, Plavix readjustment in 1 patient, and return to the operating room for an asymptomatic epidural hematoma evacuation in 1 patient. When patients were stratified on the basis of postoperative neurological examination, findings on CT scans altered management in 1.1%, 4.8%, and 9.0% of patients with no new neurological deficits, a nonfocal examination, and focal deficits, respectively. The mean total hospital cost for treating patients who undergo elective aneurysm clipping was $72,227 (± $53,966) (all values are US dollars), and the cost of obtaining a noncontrast head CT scan was $292. Neurologically intact patients required 99 head CT scans, at a cost of $28,908, to obtain 1 head CT scan that influenced medical management. In contrast, patients with a focal neurological deficit required only 11 head CT scans, at a cost of $3212, to obtain 1 head CT scan that changed clinical management. CONCLUSIONS Although there are no clear guidelines, the large number and high cost of CT scans needed to treat neurologically intact elective aneurysm patients suggest that careful neurological monitoring may be more clinically useful and a better use of hospital resources than routine postoperative CT.