Changing paradigms in the endovascular management of ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysms

BACKGROUND: Approximately 17% of ruptured anterior communicating artery (ACoA) aneurysms were deemed unsuitable for coil embolization during the Barrow Ruptured Aneurysm Trial (BRAT), most commonly due to unfavorable dome-to-neck ratio or small size. OBJECTIVE: To compare patients treated by coil embolization for ruptured ACoA aneurysms during the trial to those treated after the trial to determine whether advances in endovascular techniques have allowed for effective treatment of these lesions. METHODS: All cases of ruptured ACoA aneurysms treated by endovascular modalities during BRAT (2003-2007) and post- BRAT (2007-2012) were reviewed for patient and aneurysm characteristics, treatment types, and clinical and angiographic outcomes at 3-yr or last follow-up. RESULTS: The BRAT ACoA cohort included 39 patients treated with coiling (excluding those crossed over to clipping). The post- BRAT cohort included 93 patients who were significantly older (mean age, 59.5 vs 52.8 yr, P = .005) than the BRAT cohort; there were no significant cohort differences in sex, Hunt and Hess grade, or mean aneurysm size. The use of balloon remodeling was significantly higher in the post- BRAT cohort (31.2% [29/93] vs 5.1% [2/39], P = .001), as was the proportion of wide-necked aneurysms treated (66.7% [62/93] vs 30.8% [12/39], P < .001). There was no significant difference in clinical outcome or retreatment rate between the 2 cohorts (P = .90 and P = .48, respectively). CONCLUSION: ACoA lesions thought unamenable to endovascular therapy in an earlier randomized trial are now successfully coiled with increased use of adjunctive techniques, without sacrificing patient outcome or treatment durability.