Comprehensive review of imaging of intracranial aneurysms and angiographically negative subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Comprehensive review of imaging of intracranial aneurysms and angiographically negative subarachnoid hemorrhage. Neurosurg Focus. 2019 Dec 01;47(6):E20 Authors: Howard BM, Hu R, Barrow JW, Barrow DL Abstract Intracranial aneurysms confer the risk of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), a potentially devastating condition, though most aneurysms will remain asymptomatic for the lifetime of the patient. Imaging is critical to all stages of patient care for those who harbor an unruptured intracranial aneurysm (UIA), including to establish the diagnosis, to determine therapeutic options, to undertake surveillance in patients who elect not to undergo treatment or whose aneurysm(s) portends such a low risk that treatment is not indicated, and to perform follow-up after treatment. Neuroimaging is equally as important in patients who suffer an SAH. DSA remains the reference standard for imaging of intracranial aneurysms due to its high spatial and temporal resolution. As noninvasive imaging technology, such as CTA and MRA, improves, the diagnostic accuracy of such tests continues to increasingly approximate that of DSA. In cases of angiographically negative SAH, imaging protocols are necessary not only for diagnosis but also to search for an initially occult vascular lesion, such as a thrombosed, ruptured aneurysm that might be detected in a delayed fashion. Given the crucial role of neuroimaging in all aspects of care for patients with UIAs and SA...
Source: Neurosurgical Focus - Category: Neurosurgery Authors: Tags: Neurosurg Focus Source Type: research