Follow-up Cerebral Angiography Research Articles

Endovascular treatment of symptomatic severe intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis with a novel intracranial dedicated drug-eluting stent: a more effective treatment approach.

Endovascular treatment of severe intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (ICAS) using coronary drug-eluting stents (DESs) significantly reduces the risk of in-stent restenosis (ISR) and stroke recurrence. However, there are few reports regarding the treatment of ICAS with intracranial dedicated DES. Herein, we present our experience with the feasibility, safety, and medium-term follow-up outcomes of a novel intracranial DES, named NOVA stent, in patients with symptomatic severe ICAS (≥70%). From December 2021 to May 2022, patients with symptomatic severe ICAS who underwent implantation of the NOVA stent in our institution were retrospectively analyzed for procedural results, perioperative complications, imaging and clinical follow-up outcomes. Twenty-four patients, 16 (66.7%) with anterior circulation lesions and 8 (33.3%) with posterior circulation lesions, were enrolled. All patients with intracranial ICA (n = 6), middle cerebral artery (n = 10), basilar artery (n = 3), intracranial vertebral artery (n = 3), and the vertebrobasilar junction (n = 2) stenosis were treated successfully using NOVA stents. The severity of stenosis ranged from 75 to 96% (mean 85.9%) before treatment and this was reduced to 0 to 20% (mean 8.6%) immediately after stent placement. Symptomatic distal embolism occurred in one case; however, there were no other perioperative complications. The mean follow-up duration was 12.2 ± 1.06 months. No symptomatic ischemic events occurred during follow-up. Follow-up cerebral angiography was performed in 22 of 24 patients (91.7%), and significant ISR occurred in one patient (4.2%). Our results demonstrate that implantation of the novel intracranial DES NOVA in severe ICAS is feasible, safe, and effective in selected cases, reducing the incidence of ISR, and showing excellent midterm clinical outcomes, providing a promising option for ICAS treatment.

Dural Arteriovenous Fistula Presenting as Acute Unilateral Vestibulopathy

Intracranial dural arteriovenous fistula (dAVF) is characterized by an abnormal connection between branches of arteries and veins in the dura mater. Clinical manifestations of dAVF vary depending on their location, feeder arterial supply, amount of shunting, and most importantly, their venous drainage pattern. Acute vertigo has been rarely reported as an initial presentation of dAVF due to venous congestion in the brainstem. We report a patient who presented with acute right vestibulopathy without any brainstem signs in dAVF involving the transversesigmoid sinus. The patient showed abnormal caloric response but normal head impulse in the affected ear. Without any treatment, the patient’s symptoms gradually improved with a normalization of right canal paresis. Follow-up cerebral angiography also revealed a spontaneous regression of the shunt flow and reduction of venous drainage at the right transverse-sigmoid sinus. Based on the results of vestibular function tests and cerebral angiography, acute vertigo in our patient may be ascribed to impaired reabsorption of endolymph by focal venous congestion.

Microsurgical resection of a ruptured right peri-ventricular brain arteriovenous malformation with preoperative embolization.

A 41-year-old female presented with a headache and left inferior quadrantanopia. Imaging demonstrated a clot spanning the atrium of the ventricle to the superior parietal lobule (SPL), with a small arteriovenous malformation (AVM) nidus outside the atrium of the ventricle. The nidus was supplied by parieto-occipital arterial (P4) feeders with a single atrial draining vein. Pre-operative embolization of a pedicle with Onyx provided a surgical marker. A parietal craniotomy was performed with a trans-cortical SPL approach. During AVM resection, the draining vein was injured, which was stabilized using a temporary clip to "spot weld" the defect and continue nidus dissection with patent venous outflow. After careful dissection, coagulation, and division of all the arterial feeders, the AVM was mobilized and the draining vein was clipped, coagulated, and divided. Follow-up indocyanine green angiography and cerebral angiography both confirmed complete resection of the AVM. The patient consented to the procedure and to publication.

Treatment of In-Stent Stenosis Following Flow Diversion of Intracranial Aneurysms with Cilostazol and Clopidogrel

In-stent stenosis is a feared complication of flow diversion treatment for cerebral aneurysms. We present 2 cases of patients treated with pipeline flow diversion for unruptured cerebral aneurysms. Initial perioperative dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) consisted of standard aspirin plus clopidogrel. At 6-month follow-up cerebral angiography, the patients were noted to have developed significant in-stent stenosis (63% and 53%). The patients were treated with cilostazol and clopidogrel for at least 6 months. Subsequent angiography at 1-year post-treatment showed significant improvement of the in-stent stenosis from 63% to 34% and 53% to 21%. The role of cilostazol as treatment of intracranial in-stent stenosis has not been previously described. Cilostazol’s vasodilatory effect and suppression of vascular smooth muscle proliferation provides ideal benefits in this setting. Cilostazol plus clopidogrel may be a safe and effective alternative to standard DAPT for treatment of in-stent stenosis following flow diversion and warrants further consideration and investigation.

What Is The Need For Repeat Angiography In Spontaneous Subarachnoid Hemorrhages With Negative Initial Angiogram?

Objective: Repeat angiography is usually performed in spontaneous SAH patients who have negative initial angiography. In this study we aimed to evaluate the yield of repeat angiography in spontaneous SAH with different clinics and bleeding paterns.
 Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on spontaneous SAH patients who admitted to our neurosurgery clinic. The patients were divided into two groups as perimesencephalic and nonperimesencephalic SAH according to their bleeding patern on cerebral CT. Demographic and clinic data, routine follow-up cerebral angiography within 2 weeks, complications due to repeated cerebral angiography and the presence of new detected vascular pathology were all recorded.
 Results: 208 patients with spontaneous SAH with mean age 60.00±15.82 (20-83) years were included. The Fisher score was found lower in perimesencephalic SAH patients. Mortality was also seen more frequently in nonperimesencephalic SAH. In repeat angiography vascular pathology related with SAH was found in only nonperimesencephalic SAH patients without any statistically significancy (0 vs 4, p:0.078). The incidence of complications due to repeat angiography was similiar in both groups.
 Conclusion: In conclusion clinicians should consider to evaluate the spontaneous SAH with subsequent neuroimaging tests once more to rule out cerebral vascular pathologies. Our data suggested that perimesencephalic SAH has a better Fisher score and less mortality when compared with nonperimesencephalic SAH. Our perimesencephalic SAH patients have no vascular pathology even after repeat angiography. Therefore high quality MR angiography or CTangiography can be easily performed rather than cerebral angiography which is an invasive imaging method. Cerebral angiography should be considered only in suspected cases with perimesencephalic SAH.

Cavernous sinus thrombosis after follow-up cerebral angiography

Cavernous sinus thrombosis after follow-up cerebral angiography

Dural Arteriovenous Fistulae After Cerebral Venous Thrombosis.

This analysis examined the frequency of dural arteriovenous fistulae (dAVF) after cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) in patients included in a randomized controlled trial comparing dabigatran etexilate with dose-adjusted warfarin (RE-SPECT CVT [A Clinical Trial Comparing Efficacy and Safety of Dabigatran Etexilate With Warfarin in Patients With Cerebral Venous and Dural Sinus Thrombosis]), who had systematic follow-up magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. RE-SPECT CVT was a Phase 3, prospective, randomized, parallel-group, open-label, multicenter, exploratory trial with blinded end point adjudication. We allocated patients with acute CVT to dabigatran 150 mg twice daily or dose-adjusted warfarin, for 24 weeks and obtained a standardized MR protocol including time-of-flight MR angiography, 3-dimensional phase-contrast venography, and 3-dimensional contrast-enhanced MR venography at the end of the treatment period. A blinded adjudication committee assessed the presence of dAVF in a predefined substudy of the trial. We analyzed development of dAVF in 112 of 120 randomized patients; 57 allocated to dabigatran and 55 to warfarin. For 3 (2.7%) of these 112 patients, quality of follow-up imaging was insufficient to evaluate dAVF. A dAVF (Borden I) was found in 1 patient (0.9%) allocated to warfarin; however, this dAVF was already present at baseline. The patient did not present with hemorrhage at baseline or during the trial and was asymptomatic at follow-up. Despite systematic imaging, we found no new dAVF 6 months after CVT. Routine follow-up cerebral MR angiography aiming to detect new dAVF 6 months after CVT has a very low yield. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT02913326.

Necessity of follow-up cerebral digital subtraction angiography after endovascular coiling or microsurgical cliping of ruptured intracranial aneurysms to exclude de novo or aneurysmal regrow and avoid its rupture: report of 2 cases

Objective – to improve treatment results of patients with ruptured brain aneurysms using follow-up cerebral digital subtraction angiography to avoid de novo or aneurismal regrow.Materials and methods. Analysis of follow-up cerebral digital subtraction angiography and treatment results of two patient (60 and 64-year-old females) with brain anterior communicated artery de novo aneurysm and regrowed aneurysm of an anterior communicated artery after microsurgical clipping.Results. Two patient underwent endovascular treatment of ruptured brain aneurysms after non follow-up cerebral digital subtraction angiography. In first case de novo aneurysm of anterior communicating artery and in second – regrowed aneurys of anterior communicating artery after surgical clipping. Both patients were discharged from the clinic in I and IV modified Rankin scale. Conclusions. Digital subtraction angiography follow-up of intracranial aneurysms treated by endovascular or microsurgical approach is important for the detection and prediction for the risk of bleeding (aneurysm recurrence and de novo aneurysm). There exist no guidelines on the frequency of monitoring and imaging modality to adopt and the monitoring is adapted on a case-by-case basis. Digital subtraction angiography is the gold standard for the evaluation of aneurysmal occlusion after coiling and microsurgical clipping and remains also necessary for evaluating other devices.

One-stage Stent-assisted Coil Embolization for Rupture-side-unknown Bilateral Vertebral Artery Dissecting Aneurysms in an Acute Stage: A Case Report

Bilateral vertebral artery dissecting aneurysms (VADAs) with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) are rare and their management is still challenging. In this report, we successfully performed one-stage stent-assisted coil embolization (SAC) for bilateral VADAs with SAH in an acute stage, because the ruptured side could not be diagnosed. A 47-year-old woman presented with a sudden onset of headache without laterality, and left-side dominant SAH with bilateral VADAs was noted on computed tomography (CT) scans. The size of aneurysmal dome and neck was similar between the two VADAs, and a bleb was observed only on the right VADA. In computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, findings of wall shear stress (WSS), normalized WSS, and WSS gradient suggested that the left VADA was ruptured, while the oscillatory shear index and aneurysm formation indicator suggested the opposite-side one to be ruptured. Thus, we could not determine which VADA was ruptured by clinical data and CFD analyses. Therefore, we performed simultaneous treatment for the bilateral VADAs by using SAC technique 8 h after the onset under dual antiplatelet and anticoagulation therapies. There was no evidence of rebleeding and stent thrombosis. Stent thrombosis was monitored by duplex color-coded ultrasonography after the intervention. She was discharged without neurological deficits, and 6-month follow-up cerebral angiography demonstrated no recanalization of VADAs. This is the first report showing bilateral VADAs with SAH treated by one-stage SAC within 24 h of SAH, and the potential risks are discussed.

Concomitant carotid aplasia and basilar artery occlusion in a child with PHACES syndrome

We report a case of an 8-year-old girl with posterior fossa abnormalities, haemangioma, arterial lesions, cardiac abnormalities or coarctation of the aorta and eye abnormalities syndrome with right carotid aplasia...

Development of Arteriovenous Fistula After Revascularization Bypass for Moyamoya Disease

Moyamoya disease is a rare cerebrovascular disorder often treated by direct and indirect revascularization bypass techniques as a result of a typically devastating disease course and poor response to medical therapy. In this report, we describe the formation and subsequent management of a de novo arteriovenous fistula identified in the setting of a patient treated with direct bypass surgery, a previously unreported phenomenon. A 51-year-old woman presenting with Suzuki stage IV bilateral moyamoya disease underwent bilateral extracranial-to-intracranial superficial temporal artery-to-middle cerebral artery bypass without complication at our institution. At the 6-month follow-up, she demonstrated no evidence of residual neurological deficits or continued symptoms despite documentation of an arteriovenous fistula arising at the site of the right extracranial-to-intracranial bypass on routine follow-up cerebral angiography. We present the first reported case of de novo arteriovenous fistula formation after superficial temporal artery-to-middle cerebral artery bypass for the treatment of moyamoya disease. Treatment of such iatrogenic arteriovenous fistulae fed by a patent bypass vessel may prove challenging without associated compromise of the bypass, meriting careful evaluation of all potential therapeutic options. The fistula described herein most likely occurred secondary to recanalization of a previously thrombosed vein of Trolard. This case demonstrates the possibility of arteriovenous fistula formation as a potential sequela of revascularization bypass surgery and lends support to the previously described traumatic origin of fistula formation.

Right cervical internal carotid artery dissection as the initial presentation in a patient with clinically diagnosed segmental arterial mediolysis

A 46-year-old man developed acute-onset right cervical internal carotid artery occlusion at its origin, and concomitant multiple visceral artery aneurysms were also detected during the evaluation of cerebral infarction. Follow-up cerebral angiography confirmed the irregular and beaded appearance of the right cervical internal carotid artery, presumably secondary to dissection. The clinical and radiological findings in the patient were most consistent with segmental arterial mediolysis, and we considered that segmental arterial mediolysis might be the cause of internal carotid artery dissection. The typical presentation of segmental arterial mediolysis is acute fetal intra-abdominal hemorrhage as a result of dissection of visceral artery aneurysms. Hence, physicians should be aware of segmental arterial mediolysis in the differential diagnosis of internal carotid arterydissection and carefully assess the application of thrombolytic therapy.

P-007 Incidence and Management of Intimal Hyperplasia at 6 months after Flow Diversion for Intracranial Aneurysms

Introduction/purposeA new option in the treatment of large and complex intracranial aneurysms centerd along the cavernous/intradural segment of the ICA, proximal to the PCom artery, includes the utilization of flow-diverter...

Expression of circulating vascular endothelial growth factor-antagonizing cytokines and vascular stabilizing factors prior to and following bypass surgery in patients with moyamoya disease.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-antagonizing cytokines and VEGF-influenced vascular stabilizing cytokines in patients with moyamoya disease (MMD) and the association with postoperative collateral vessel formation. The study population included 53 MMD patients that had undergone indirect bypass surgery and 50 healthy controls. Serum levels of VEGF, thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1), TSP-2, soluble VEGF receptor-1 (sVEGFR-1), sVEGFR-2, endostatin, angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) and Ang-2 were measured at the baseline (preoperative) and at day seven following surgery. Postoperative collateralization assessment was conducted upon the six-month follow-up cerebral angiography. Cytokine levels were compared between patients with good or poor collateral formation. Compared with the healthy controls, MMD patients exhibited lower baseline levels of sVEGFR-1 (P<0.0001) and sVEGFR-2 (P<0.0001), but higher VEGF expression (P<0.0001). Ang-1 and Ang-2 levels did not exhibit any difference between the two groups. On day seven following surgery, MMD patients exhibited an almost unchanged sVEGFR-1 and sVEGFR-2 expression level, but upregulated expression of VEGF (P<0.0001), Ang-1 (P<0.0001) and TSP-2 (P<0.0001). The six-month follow-up angiographies revealed that 21 patients (45.65%) that had undergone the same surgical procedure achieved good collateralization. Patients with good collateral formation appeared to have lower sVEGFR-1 and sVEGFR-2 levels prior to (P=0.029 and P=0.045, respectively) and at day seven (P=0.044 and P=0.047, respectively) following bypass surgery when compared with the patients with worse collateralization. Therefore, sVEGFR-1 and sVEGFR-2 may play a role in the pathogenesis of MMD. Lower levels of sVEGFR-1 and sVEGFR-2 indicated better postoperative collateralization in the six months following indirect bypass surgery. However, Ang-1 and Ang-2 may not be specifically involved in the course of MMD.

Abstract TP143: Early Angiographic Neovascularization Response to EDAS Surgery in Adults with Intracranial Arterial Stenosis

Introduction: Significant neovascularization following indirect revascularization procedures, such as encephaloduroarteriosynangiosis (EDAS), has traditionally been considered to develop slowly over time. However, a recent study of angiography following indirect revascularization procedures demonstrated early signs of revascularization as early as 4 days following surgery. While we have previously published demonstration of robust revascularization at 6 months and later following surgery, here we present a subset of patients, all with non-moyamoya intracranial arterial stenosis (IAS), with earlier angiographic evaluation following EDAS. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed charts of adult patients who have undergone EDAS for non-moyamoya IAS. These early angiograms were evaluated for signs of revascularization and graded according to the scale presented by Perren et al (1, no sign of neoangiogenesis; 2, one-to-four new transcortical vessels; 3, &gt; four new transcortical vessels). Results: Ten patients (mean age 43 years, 8 females) were found with follow-up cerebral angiography within 6 months of surgery (1 each at 1, 2 &amp; 3 mo, 2 at 1.5 mo, 3 at 5 mo, and 4 at 6 mo). All angiograms demonstrated neovascularity, regardless of underlying diagnosis, including scores of 3 (extensive neoangiogenesis) in 80% of cases as early as 1.5 months after surgery. Two patients had grade 2 at 1 &amp; 2 months. Clinically, all patients’ ischemic symptomatology has resolved. Six patients have had no symptoms since surgery while 4 patients had transient episodes consistent with ischemia (TIA) that all resolved by 2 weeks post-operatively (3 at 1 week and 1 at 2 weeks). No patient suffered stroke following EDAS. Conclusion: This series adds to the growing evidence that indirect revascularization procedures can lead to significant neovascularity in a shorter time frame than previously expected in adult patients, including those with non-moyamoya IAS. Further study is required to better define the time course of neoangiogenesis and to evaluate angiogenic mechanisms that contribute to the success of this procedure.

Ruptured Mycotic Aneurysm of the Distal Middle Cerebral Artery Manifesting as Subacute Subdural Hematoma

Mycotic aneurysms are rare inflammatory neurovascular lesions. Ruptured mycotic aneurysm manifesting as subdural hematoma is extremely rare. A 72-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital with headache and drowsiness. Computer tomography (CT) of brain and CT angiography revealed subdural hematoma and an aneurysm located at the M4 segment of the left middle cerebral artery (MCA). Cerebral angiogram revealed 2 aneurysms; one located at the left distal MCA and the other at the bifurcation of left MCA. Laboratory studies showed leukocytosis and elevated inflammatory factors. The patent was treated with antibiotic therapy for 4 weeks. The follow-up CT and cerebral angiography showed that the mycotic aneurysm was completely resolved, and the patient was nearly free of symptoms.

Clinical and Radiologic Results of Endovascular Coil Embolization for Cerebral Aneurysm in Young Patients

PurposeThis study is an overview of the clinical and radiologic outcomes of endovascular coil embolization for cerebral aneurysm in patients aged 40 years and younger.Materials and MethodsBetween January 2008 and June 2011, 218 aneurysms were treated using endovascular coil embolization and followed up with cerebral angiography at least six months later. Twenty-one aneurysms occurred in patients aged 40 years and younger, while 197 occurred in 179 patients older than 40 years. The clinical and radiologic results were retrospectively analyzed and compared between the two groups using the modified Rankin scale scores and the modified Raymond scale.ResultsFollow-up cerebral angiography revealed two (9.5%) major and two (9.5%) minor recanalized aneurysms in patients aged 40 years and younger, and six (3.0%) major and 35 (17.7%) minor recanalized aneurysms in patients older than 40 years. However, the differences between the groups were not statistically significant. The preoperative and postoperative mean modified Rankin scale scores at time for follow-up angiography were 1.14 and 0.19 respectively for patients aged 40 years and younger, and 1.30 and 0.30 respectively for patients older than 40 years.ConclusionThe younger patients had clinically favorable outcomes with tolerable angiographic follow-up results. More regular and long-term imaging follow-up is required for younger patients due to their longer life expectancy.

Endovascular treatment for saccular aneurysms of the proximal (M1) segment of the middle cerebral artery

Saccular aneurysms located at the M1 segment of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) are uncommon, and endovascular treatment (EVT) for them is not well documented. We performed this study to evaluate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of EVT for proximal (M1) segment saccular aneurysm of the middle cerebral artery. Of 153 MCA aneurysms between January 2007 and September 2011, 29 patients with 29 M1 segment saccular aneurysms were treated at our institution via endovascular approach. There were 14 men and 15 women with a mean age of 56.2 years (range 36-78 years). Treatments were successful in 28 (96.6 %) cases, including coiling alone in 19 patients, stent-assisted coiling in 8, and balloon-assisted coiling in 1. In the failed case, coiling was not successful, and only a stent was deployed. Immediate angiograms showed total occlusion in 13 patients, neck remnant in 7, partial occlusion in 8, and contrast stasis in the patient who was not coiled successfully. Two (6.9 %) procedure-related complications occurred, including early temporal branch (ETB) obliteration in one patient and lenticulostriate artery (LSA) occlusion in the other one, which resulted in hemiparalysis of one patient. Three patients died from initial severe SAH during hospitalization. One patient died from heart infarction 1 month after operation. Twenty-three of 25 surviving patients underwent follow-up cerebral angiography at intervals ranging from 1 to 21 months (mean, 7.3 months). The result showed 14/23 (60.9 %) aneurysms were completely occluded, 3/23 (13 %) were recanalized, and others were stable or improved. The clinical follow-up (mean, 22.5 months) of all survived patients demonstrated no neurologic deterioration or rebleeding. Our preliminary experience demonstrates that EVT for proximal MCA aneurysm is feasible and safe. However, more adequate follow-up is required to evaluate its long-term results.

Treatment of Complex Intracranial Aneurysms with a Telescoping Stent Technique

Complex intracranial aneurysms present a treatment challenge for both open and endovascular modalities of treatment. This report seeks to illustrate a series of patients with aneurysms treated with telescoping stents as a method of flow diversion for small and fusiform intracranial aneurysms. A retrospective evaluation of six patients treated with a telescoping stent technique utilizing available stents (at that time before the pipeline era) for complex cerebral aneurysms between January 2009 and January 2010 was performed. Five patients had dissecting aneurysms and one patient had a small superior hypophyseal artery aneurysm. One of the patients was treated in the setting of a Hunt and Hess grade IV subarachnoid hemorrhage. Follow-up cerebral angiography was performed postprocedure at 6 months. At a mean follow-up period of 9 months, all the patients experienced complete or near-complete occlusion (>95%). No periprocedural complications were noted in this series. No episodes of hemorrhage or thromboembolic complications occurred. Overlapping Neuroform and Enterprise stents may induce complete thrombosis of intracranial aneurysms and facilitate parent artery remodeling. The use of self-expanding stents is still an adequate treatment modality, especially if there is a need for vessel wall stabilization rather than flow diversion. The technique is also a sufficient alternative in small intracranial aneurysms not readily amenable to open surgical treatment or traditional endovascular coil embolization.

Surgical access on the superior ophthalmic vein to the cavernous sinus dural fistula for embolization

BackgroundDirect surgical exposure and cannulation (DSEC) of the superior ophthalmic vein (SOV) can be used as an alternative approach for the endovascular treatment of cavernous sinus dural fistulas (CSDF) that...