Ruptures of arterial aneurysms of the brain and stenosis of the carotid basin: clinic, diagnosis

Abstract

Objective – to investigate the clinical and morphological characteristics of the manifestations of the rupture of arterial aneurysms of the brain in patients with occlusive-stenotic lesions of the cerebral arteries.Materials and methods. 1147 case histories of patients with aneurysmal disease of the cerebral arteries who underwent comprehensive examination and treatment in the Department of Neurosurgical Pathology of Head and Neck Vessels with X-ray Surgical Department «Romodanov Institute of Neurosurgery NAMS of Ukraine» since 2006 until 2022. The medical histories of 126 patients who were included in this study and divided into two groups were studied in detail. The criteria for inclusion in the main group (38 men and 25 women) were: surgical treatment; rupture of arterial aneurysm the presence (proven using instrumental examination methods) of occlusive-stenotic lesions.The criteria for inclusion in the control group (38 men and 25 women) were: surgical treatment; rupture of arterial aneurysm; absence (proven by means of instrumental examination methods) of occlusive-stenotic lesions; the gender and age distribution had to match the main group.Among the patients included in this study, there were 76 men (60.32 %) and 50 women (39.68 %). The age of the patients varied from 31 to 77 years. The average age of patients ‒ 55.9 ± 0.76 years. Results. The Hunt‒Hess severity of patients was approximately the same between the main and control groups. When evaluated by the World Federation of Neurologican Surgeons (WFNS) and Glasgow Coma scale (GCS), more patients in the control group had a lighter score. Aneurysms of the anterior cerebral-anterior connecting artery complex prevailed in both groups. A higher frequency of arterial aneurysms of the middle cerebral artery was revealed among patients of the main group (main group ‒ 27.0 %, comparison group 15.8 %). The higher number of multiple aneurysms in the main group (the main group ‒ 25.4 %, the controlgroup ‒ 12.7 %) and the smaller number of miliary aneurysms and the larger number of large aneurysms in the main group may indicate the predominance of congenital etiological factors common to both pathologies in the development of the disease until the rupture of the arterial aneurysm.Conclusions. Gender differences were established with a predominance of men among patients of the main group (60.32 %). The average age of men with occlusive-stenotic lesions was lower than that of women (men – 54.3±0.94 years, women – 58.3±1.19 years). The difference in age is especially pronounced in the subgroup of the main group where the severity of stenosis is 50‒75 % (men ‒ 48.3 years; women ‒ 62.0 years).The neurological status of patients with a hemorrhagic stroke, as a result of the rupture of an arterial aneurysm, is significantly aggravated by occlusive-stenotic lesions due to the occurrence of chronic brain ischemia. The worst prognosis is in men with a ruptured arterial aneurysm and a 50‒75 % stenotic lesion.