Endovascular Treatment of Small and Very Small Intracranial Aneurysms with the Woven EndoBridge Device.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The Woven EndoBridge has proved to be a safe and effective treatment, especially for wide-neck intracranial aneurysms. The recent fifth-generation Woven EndoBridge came with smaller devices. The purpose of this study was to assess the safety and efficiency of Woven EndoBridge treatment of small and very small aneurysms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between September 2017 and March 2020, all consecutive patients treated with a 3- or 3.5 mm-width Woven EndoBridge device were included in this retrospective intention-to-treat study. Clinical and radiologic findings were evaluated at immediate and last-available follow-up. Angiographic outcome was assessed by an external expert reader. RESULTS: One hundred twenty-eight aneurysms were treated with a fifth-generation Woven EndoBridge device including 29 with a width of ≤3.5 mm. Ten aneurysms were ruptured (34%). In 3 cases (10%), Woven EndoBridge treatment could not be performed because the aneurysm was still too small for the smallest available Woven EndoBridge device and another endovascular strategy was chosen. The median follow-up time was 11.2 months. Complete and adequate occlusion was obtained in 71% and 90% of the treated aneurysms, respectively. Retreatment was needed in 2 cases (10%). Symptomatic ischemic complications leading to transient neurologic deficits occurred in 2 cases (7%) (1 procedure-related and 1 device-related) but with full spontaneous recovery at discharge. CONCLUSIONS: The fifth-generation Woven EndoBridge device seems to be a safe and technically feasible treatment for both ruptured and unruptured small and very small intracranial aneurysms, with satisfactory occlusion rates on midterm follow-up. However, further study is needed to evaluate longer-term efficiency.

Management of a Low-Energy Penetrating Brain Injury Caused by a Nail.

Low-energy penetrating nail injury to the brain is an extremely rare neurosurgical emergency. The most common cause of nail gun injury is work related accidents; other causes result from accidental firing of a nail gun, suicide attempts by firing nail guns into the brain, and bomb blasts containing pieces of nails. Neurosurgical treatment performed by craniotomy still seems to be the safest one; there are reports of complications such as subdural hematoma and intraparenchymal hemorrhages following the blind removal of foreign bodies leading to suggestions that all penetrating foreign bodies should be removed under direct vision. We report a rarely described neurosurgical approach for removal of a penetrating nail from the brain and skull without evidence of associated hematoma and other brain lesions.

Spontaneous subarachnoid haemorrhage from rupture of an anterior communicating artery aneurysm in a patient with pituitary macroadenoma.

The presence of a cerebral aneurysm in patients with pituitary adenoma is a rare event. Diagnostic suspicion may stem from magnetic resonance imaging, which should lead to complementary investigation. As for treatment, even in conditions in which there has been no previous bleeding, the simultaneous approach should be considered, prioritising the aneurysm most of the time. The present report describes the case of a patient with a history of pituitary macroadenoma, who had undergone a partial transsphenoidal resection ten years earlier. Admission to our service occurred after a sudden headache followed by mental confusion. A cranial computed tomography showed subarachnoid haemorrhage and expansive suprasellar lesion. Cerebral angiography showed a saccular aneurysm of the anterior communicating complex. The patient underwent a surgical procedure for microsurgical clipping of the aneurysm and partial resection of the pituitary tumour. We have also included a brief review of the literature on this subject.

Basilar artery aneurysm at a persistent trigeminal artery junction. A case report and literature review.

The trigeminal artery is an anastomosis between the embryonic precursors of the vertebrobasilar and carotid systems, and may persist into adult life. The association of the persistent primitive trigeminal artery (PTA) with cerebral aneurysm is well documented in the literature and, in general, aneurysms are located in the anterior circulation. We describe a patient who presented with a panencephalic Fisher III subarachnoid hemorrhage due to rupture of an intracranial aneurysm. Digital arteriography showed a saccular aneurysm in the middle third of the basilar artery, adjacent to the junction with a persistent trigeminal artery. She was submitted to endovascular treatment with embolization of the basilar artery aneurysm with coils. Aneurysms at the PTA junction with the basilar artery are rare. This paper describes a case of PTA associated with an aneurysm in the basilar artery at PTA junction and briefly reviews the literature.

Urethral extrusion of a peritoneal catheter in a patient with a neobladder: a rare complication of shunt insertion.

The insertion of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) is considered the standard of care for several forms of hydrocephalus. Abdominal complications are most common with this procedure, comprising up to 30% of all shunt-related problems. Conversely, visceral perforation or extrusion of the shunt apparatus is rare. Herein we report a rare complication of VPS insertion in which the peritoneal catheter was spontaneously extruded through the urethra of a patient with a neobladder. We further discuss the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of this condition.

De novo basilar tip aneurysm. Case report and literature review.

The de novo aneurysms are the formation of new aneurysms in a location previously observed to be normal by a cerebral angiography or direct microsurgical exploration. In this report, we present a review of the theme and describe a case of a ruptured de novo basilar tip aneurysm in a patient previously treated with carotid occlusion for a giant intracavernous aneurysm and microsurgical clipping of contralateral posterior communicating artery aneurysm.

Giant intracranial pial arteriovenous fistula treated by endovascular intervention.

INTRODUCTION: Arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) are rare vascular lesions of the brain that differ from arteriovenous malformations as they present a direct connection between artery and vein, without interposition of the nidus. They are fed by one or more arterial branches, with a single draining vein. Clinically they can be revealed through cerebral hemorrhage, convulsive crisis, neurological deficit, heart failure in neonates and infants, headache, bruit, or intracranial hypertension symptoms. PATIENT AND METHODS: A 30-year-old patient was found unconscious on a public street, presenting a generalized tonic-clonic convulsive crisis. At admission, she presented with ocular proptosis, conjunctival hyperemia and bilateral jugular turgescence. The cranial computed tomography showed diffuse subarachnoid hemorrhage, and the cerebral angiography evidenced a giant intracranial pial AVF with high flow supplied by 2 branches of the left anterior cerebral artery.The patient underwent endovascular treatment in 2 sessions, using a mixture of histoacryl and lipiodol for complete occlusion of the lesion. She was discharged after a month, alert, devoid of motor deficit, and the ocular proptosis and the conjunctival hyperemia had decreased. CONCLUSION: AVFs are rare vascular lesions that require prompt treatment. The endovascular treatment must be considered, especially when the lesions are deep and the risks of neurological deficit associated with the surgery are high. Endoscopic intervention represents an effective and safe option for the treatment of this type of lesion.