Intravascular laser coagulation of experimental aneurysms.
Rebleeding after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage has a 45 per cent mortality rate. The peak incidence is within 24 hours of the initial bleed. During the ensuing 2 weeks 20 per cent of patients with suffer a second hemorrhage. To avoid this, surgical treatment must be instituted promptly but, logistically, this is often difficult to implement. To this end, we have devised an intravascular laser-catheter technique that may provide expeditious treatment for intracranial aneurysms. We have coagulated experimental aneurysms in the rabbit carotid artery using laser energy transmitted through an intra-arterial optical fiber. The special fiber tip was positioned in the aneurysm by a catheter introduced from the femoral artery. Laser power of 750 mW and an exposure of 15 seconds caused aneurysm ablation leaving the feeding artery patent. To date, 4 experimental aneurysms have been occluded by this technique and long term histologic results are pending in this ongoing study.
O'Reilly
G V
GV
Department of Radiology, Beth Israel Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
Forrest
M D
MD
Clarke
R H
RH
Schoene
W C
WC
D000783:Aneurysm / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D000818:Animals; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D008028:Light Coagulation / Q000379:methods; D011817:Rabbits; D011859:Radiography