From this preliminary study, the high feasibility rate and lack of need for systematic antiplatelet agents favor the WEB device providing a solution for endovascular treatment of ruptured wide-neck bifurcation aneurysms during the acute phase. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the complication rate and long-term efficiency.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:The flow-diverter stent has been proved a feasible, safe, and efficient technique, particularly for the treatment of large and broad-neck carotid siphon aneurysms. Wide-neck bifurcation aneurysms remain, in some cases, a challenge for neurointerventionalists. We report the outcomes of the treatment of saccular middle cerebral artery bifurcation aneurysms with flow diversion in our institution.

OBJECT The concept of the flow-diverter stent (FDS) is to induce aneurysmal thrombosis while preserving the patency of the parent vessel and any covered branches. In some circumstances, it is impossible to avoid dangerously covering small branches, such as the anterior choroidal artery (AChA), with the stent. In this paper, the authors describe the clinical and angiographic effects of covering the AChA with an FDS. METHODS Between April 2011 and July 2013, 92 patients with intracranial aneurysms were treated with the use of FDSs in the authors’ institution. For 20 consecutive patients (21.7%) retrospectively included in this study, this involved the unavoidable covering of the AChA with a single FDS during endovascular therapy. AChAs feeding the choroid plexus were classified as the long-course group (14 cases), and those not feeding the choroid plexus were classified as the short-course group (6 cases). Clinical symptoms and the angiographic aspect of the AChA were evaluated immediately after stent delivery and during follow-up. Neurological examinations were performed to rule out hemiparesis, hemihypesthesia, hemianopsia, and other cortical signs. RESULTS FDS placement had no immediate effect on AChA blood flow. Data were obtained from 1-month clinical follow-up in all patients and from midterm angiographic follow-up in 17 patients (85.0%), with a mean length of 9.8 ± 5.4 months. No patient in either group complained of transient or permanent symptoms related to an AChA occlusion. In all cases, the AChA remained patent without any flow changes. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study suggest that when impossible to avoid, the AChA may be safely covered with a single FDS during intracranial aneurysm treatment, irrespective of anatomy and anastomoses.