title: Megadolichobasilar artery and acute cerebrovascular pathology.
abstract: Sixteen patients with a megadolichobasilar artery and acute cerebrovascular symptoms are reported. All were explored by computerized tomography and vertebral angiography. Nine had transient ischaemic attacks or definitive ischaemic lesions, whereas 7 had subarachnoid or intracerebral haemorrhage. Among the patients with ischaemic troubles, vertebro-basilar insufficiency and pontine infarction were the most common clinico-radiological findings. Among the patients with intracranial haemorrhage, 4 had associated aneurysms or arteriovenous malformations, while 3 had subarachnoid or intracerebral haemorrhage with no vascular malformations on the angiograms. The possible relationships between the megadolichobasilar anomaly and the cerebral ischaemic or haemorrhagic pathologies are discussed also from a review of the pertinent literature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, 2nd School of Medicine, University of Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Maiuri
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gallicchio
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Iaconetta
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cinalli
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001488:Basilar Artery / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed