- Predictors of Incomplete Occlusion following Pipeline Embolization of Intracranial Aneurysms: Is It Less Effective in Older Patients?
This was a retrospective analysis of 465 consecutive aneurysms treated with the Pipeline Embolization Device between 2009 and 2016, at 3 academic institutions in the United States. Cases with angiographic follow-up were selected to evaluate factors predictive of incomplete aneurysm occlusion at last follow-up. Older age (more than 70 years), nonsmoking status, aneurysm location within the posterior communicating artery or posterior circulation, greater aneurysm maximal diameter (>21 mm), and shorter follow-up time (<12 months) were significantly associated with incomplete aneurysm occlusion at last angiographic follow-up.
- Angioarchitectures and Hemodynamic Characteristics of Posterior Communicating Artery Aneurysms and Their Association with Rupture Status
The authors studied 313 posterior communicating artery aneurysms (145 ruptured, 168 unruptured) with image-based computational fluid dynamics. Aneurysms were classified into different angioarchitecture types depending on the location of the aneurysm with respect to parent artery bifurcation. Ruptured aneurysms had higher, more concentrated, and more oscillatory wall shear stress distributions; stronger and more concentrated inflow jets; and more complex and unstable flow patterns compared with unruptured aneurysms. They conclude that high-flow intrasaccular hemodynamic characteristics, commonly found in bifurcation-type angioarchitectures, are associated with the posterior communicating artery aneurysm rupture status.