%0 Case Reports
%T Beneficial remodeling of small saccular intracranial aneurysms after staged stent only treatment: a case series.
%A Nyberg EM
%A Larson TC
%J J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis
%V 23
%N 1
%D Jan 2014
%M 23153548
%F 2.677
%R 10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2012.09.012
%X <B>BACKGROUND: </B>We evaluated the effect of stent alone treatment for small intracranial aneurysms that were not amenable to coil embolization without prior stent reconstruction.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>This case series was conducted in the neurosurgical service at a tertiary care hospital in Denver, Colorado. Nine patients were electively treated for intracranial aneurysms. All patients had a single low porosity stent reconstruction device placed across the neck of a small intracranial aneurysm. The main outcome measures were changes in aneurysm size and parent vessel morphology during follow-up.<BR><B>RESULTS: </B>Nine patients underwent stent alone treatment for unruptured intracranial aneurysms. The mean follow-up period was 9.6 months (range 6-17 months). There were no cases of periprocedural morbidity or aneurysm rupture during follow-up. All aneurysms decreased in size, and 3 of 9 aneurysms were gone at follow-up. In addition, at follow-up all parent vessels demonstrated straightening about the aneurysm site.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>Beneficial remodeling with a decrease in the size of small intracranial aneurysms may be seen after treatment with a single stent alone, particularly if the aneurysm arises at an arterial bend or bifurcation. This phenomenon may be related to a degree of straightening of the parent artery, improving hemodynamic conditions about the aneurysm site.