Rebleeding and Ischemia after Acute Endovascular Treatment of Ruptured Dissecting Subarachnoid Vertebral Artery Aneurysms

Dissection aneurysms of the vertebral artery represent 3.2% of all cerebral aneurysms and 28% of intracranial dissection aneurysms.

Dissection of the vertebral artery in its intracranial segment (V4) usually causes a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) from subadventiatial extension of the vessel wall hematoma. Rarely (one case in seven), the symptomatology is characterized by brain stem ischemia from the vertebral artery and/or postero-inferior cerebellar artery occlusive dissection. The high rebleeding (18–33% with a 10+/-5 day interval between the first and the second bleeding) and mortality (>45%) rates 1, 13 of this disease prompt emergency treatment usually consisting in endovascular coiling of the dissection aneurysm and/or the dissected segment of the parent vessel.

Herein we report our experience in endovascular coiling of acutely ruptured dissecting aneurysms of the vertebral artery dissection in V4 segment. We focus the discussion on the risk of rebleeding and the ischemic complications that my occur after endovascular or surgical treatment.