Simplified azygos anterior cerebral bypass: y-shaped superficial temporal artery interposition graft from A2 with double reimplantation of pericallosal arteries: technical case report

Evolution of Intracranial-Intracranial Bypass Surgery: A Bibliometric Analysis

OBJECTIVE

Modern cerebrovascular bypass surgery uses either extracranial-intracranial (EC-IC) or intracranial-intracranial (IC-IC) approaches. Compared with EC-IC bypasses, IC-IC bypasses allow neurosurgeons to safely address tumors, aneurysms, and other lesions using shorter grafts that are well matched to the size of recipient vessels. Fewer than 100 articles have been published on IC-IC bypasses compared with more than 1000 on EC-IC bypasses. This study examined the increase of interest and innovation in IC-IC bypass.

METHODS

PubMed and Web of Science were searched using keywords specific to IC-IC bypass, yielding 717 articles supplemented with 36 reports from other databases and gray literature. The articles were reviewed, and 98 articles were selected for further evaluation. Final articles were categorized as innovations or retrospective studies. Publication metrics were passed through an analytic program to assess statistical measures of growth.

RESULTS

The number of publications describing innovations (n = 52) and retrospective studies (n = 46) in IC-IC surgical techniques increased exponentially (R2 = 0.983 and R2 = 0.993, respectively), with both interest and research in the field increasing. The rate of publications in each group also increased. In recent years, increasing numbers of global institutions have researched and published on IC-IC bypasses.

CONCLUSIONS

As more work is undertaken on IC-IC bypasses, it is critical for knowledge to be shared through research, collaboration, publication, and early teaching within residency training programs. This field has increased exponentially in the past 2 decades and has yet to reach an inflection point, indicating possible additional interest and growth over time.

A case of ruptured infectious anterior cerebral artery aneurysm treated by interposition graft bypass using the superficial temporal artery

Background:

To describe the application of an interposition graft bypass using superficial temporal artery (STA) for the treatment of a ruptured anterior cerebral artery (ACA) infectious aneurysm.

Case Description:

A 30-year-old male suffered from severe headache with high fever. The patient's diagnosis was ruptured infectious ACA aneurysm at the A3 segment with a maximum diameter of 4.5 mm, caused by infectious endocarditis. The patient was initially treated with high-dose intravenous antibiotics. Follow-up digital subtraction angiography (DSA) revealed that the fusiform aneurysm had enlarged to a maximum diameter of 14.0 mm. A left paracentral artery, supplying the motor area of the left lower extremity, originated from the body of this aneurysm. Because the angiographic findings suggested a risk of recurrent bleeding, the patient underwent open surgery. Interposition graft bypass using the STA was performed to reconstruct the left A3 segment in an end-to-side manner (left proximal callosomarginal artery – STA graft – left distal pericallosal artery). Then, the origin of the left paracentral artery was cut and anastomosed to the STA graft in an end-to-side manner. The affected parent artery was trapped, and the aneurysm was resected. Postoperative magnetic resonance imaging showed no ischemic or hemorrhagic complications, and postoperative DSA revealed the patency of the interposition graft. Pathological diagnosis of the resected aneurysm revealed features corresponding to infectious cerebral aneurysm. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged without any neurological deficits.

Conclusion:

In the treatment of infectious cerebral aneurysms, revascularization should be considered when the affected artery supplies the eloquent area. Interposition graft bypass using the STA is one of the options for revascularization surgery for the treatment of infectious ACA aneurysms.

Revascularization and Aneurysm Surgery

BACKGROUND:

Given advances in endovascular technique, the indications for revascularization in aneurysm surgery have declined.

OBJECTIVE:

We sought to define indications, outline technical strategies, and evaluate the outcomes of patients treated with bypass in the endovascular era.

METHODS:

We retrospectively reviewed all aneurysms treated between September 2006 and February 2013.

RESULTS:

We identified 54 consecutive patients (16 males and 39 females) with 56 aneurysms. Aneurysms were located along the cervical internal carotid artery (ICA) (n = 1), petrous/cavernous ICA (n = 1), cavernous ICA (n = 16), supraclinoid ICA (n = 7), posterior communicating artery (n = 2), anterior cerebral artery (n = 4), middle cerebral artery (MCA) (n = 13), posterior cerebral artery (PCA) (n = 3), posterior inferior cerebellar artery (n = 4), and vertebrobasilar arteries (n = 5). Revascularization was performed with superficial temporal artery (STA) to MCA bypass (n = 25), STA to superior cerebellar artery (SCA) (n = 3), STA to PCA (n = 1), STA-SCA/STA-PCA (n = 1), occipital artery (OA) to PCA (n = 2), external carotid artery/ICA to MCA (n = 15), OA to MCA (n = 1), OA to posterior inferior cerebellar artery (n = 1), and in situ bypasses (n = 8). At a mean clinical follow-up of 18.5 months, 45 patients (81.8%) had a good outcome (Glasgow Outcome Scale 4 or 5). There were 7 cases of mortality (12.7%) and an additional 9 cases of morbidity (15.8%). At a mean angiographic follow-up of 17.8 months, 14 bypasses were occluded. Excluding the 7 cases of mortality, the majority of aneurysms (n = 42) were obliterated. We identified 7 cases of residual aneurysm and recurrence in 6 patients at follow-up.

CONCLUSION:

Given current limitations with existing treatments, cerebral revascularization remains an essential technique for aneurysm surgery.