The combined approach to intracranial aneurysm treatment

Abstract

Background A consecutive series of patients with intracranial aneurysms in the practice of one neurovascular surgeon was retrospectively reviewed to illustrate that one physician can become proficient in microneurosurgery as well as endovascular surgery and achieve favorable outcomes in both disciplines. This supports one model of training for cerebrovascular surgeons that includes the complimentary practice of open microneurovascular surgery with endovascular surgery. Methods The senior author (HAR) treated 351 patients with 413 aneurysms between July 2001 and March 2007. Of these, 172 patients (216 aneurysms) were treated with open microneurosurgical techniques and 179 patients (197 aneurysms) were treated using endovascular techniques. Results Complete obliteration was attained in 94.3% of clipped aneurysms, and 61.9% and 65.9% of coiled aneurysms immediately and after at least 6 months of follow-up, respectively. At latest evaluation, 93% of endovascular patients and 90% of microneurosurgical patients had good clinical outcomes (GOS, 4 or 5; mean follow-up, 23 months; combines ruptured and unruptured cohorts). Procedure-related mortality included 1 surgical patient and 2 endovascular patients. Conclusions Because the fields of microvascular and endovascular surgeries are both technically complex, there has been concern that hybrid cerebrovascular surgeons cannot perform each technique with the skill necessary to achieve good outcomes. When compared to clipping and coiling reviews in the neurosurgical literature, we illustrate that one hybrid neurovascular surgeon is capable of attaining great facility in both techniques and that this type of physician will represent one practice model of cerebrovascular specialist in the future. This has potential implications for the training of hybrid cerebrovascular surgeons.