Morphological patterns of the cerebral arterial circle of Willis: Implication in subjects with ischemic stroke

Abstract

Background: A stroke or cerebrovascular accident is associated with defects in the circle of Willis. The present research assessed whether differences in the anatomy of the circle of Willis were implicated in subjects affected by stroke. Materials and methods: A retrospective descriptive (cohort) study of images of 340 male and female subjects aged 15 to 75 years, referred for either brain Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA) or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan indicative of suspected stroke, was employed. A convenient sampling technique was used to obtain images from selected hospitals and radio-diagnostic centers with Computed Tomography (CT) and MRI scanners. Approval was obtained from the Federal Health Research Ethics Committee in accordance with institutional guidelines and principles, following permission and clearance (Approval Number: FHREC/2019/01/51/13-05-19). Patterns of morphology observed in the circle of Willis were data collected and stored in a non-identifiable format. Data obtained were analyzed with the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Inc, Chicago, IL, USA version 25.0. Results: Of the total 340 images evaluated, 256 (75.29%) subjects had ischemic stroke while 84 (24.71%) subjects had no stroke and were thus, considered to be apparently normal. Structural patterns in the circle of Willis mostly observed were the absence of the anterior communicating artery (10.94%) and the bilateral absence of the posterior communicating artery (10.16%). Conclusion: Morphological patterns of the cerebral arterial circle of Willis observed, were implicated in subjects affected with stroke in the present study population.