Study finds low risk in treating previously coile...( CINCINNATIThe risks associated with ...),Health

CINCINNATIThe risks associated with treating a recurrent or residual brain aneurysm that was initially treated by endovascular coiling are low, according to a multicenter study led by researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) Neuroscience Institute.

In the study of 311 patients with coiled aneurysms who underwent retreatment procedures at eight academic health centers, the risk of death or permanent major disability was slightly over one in 100, or 1.28 percent.

The study is part of an ongoing effort to quantify the risks of treating dangerous brain aneurysms by filling them with tiny coils delivered with a catheter. It was published in the August 2009 issue of Neurosurgery.

"This quantitative evidence is important to patients and physicians because there is often more than one way to treat a brain aneurysm," says Andrew Ringer, MD, associate professor and director of endovascular neurosurgery at UC and a neurosurgeon with the Mayfield Clinic. "Having an aneurysm coiled and avoiding a surgical procedure that requires opening the skull can be a very attractive option for patients. On the downside, coiling carries a higher rate of aneurysm recurrence than the standard surgical treatment."

A brain aneurysm is a balloon-like bulge or weakening of an arterial wall. If the walls of an aneurysm become too thin, it can rupture, often causing brain damage or death. Approximately 27,000 individuals suffer a ruptured brain aneurysm in the United States each year, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Some brain aneurysms can be treated surgically through an opening in the skull or eyebrow. During the surgical procedure, a neurosurgeon can place a clip on the aneurysm at its base, thereby blocking the blood flow into the aneurysm and preventing it from bleeding.

Because some aneurysms cannot be clipped because of their shape or location, specialists have developed
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