title: The natural history of unruptured intracranial aneurysms.
abstract: Since the publication of preliminary results from the International Study of Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms in 1998 there has been a great deal of debate concerning the natural history of these lesions and their attendant risk of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Therefore, the authors reviewed a selected number of crucial studies concerning this topic to determine the best evidence-based estimate of a rupture rate for these lesions. Based on this analysis, the yearly risk of bleeding for an unruptured intracranial aneurysm is estimated to be approximately 1% for aneurysms 7 to 10 mm in diameter. This risk of rupture increases with aneurysm size and it likewise diminishes as the size of the lesion decreases. This general rule serves as a reasonable interpretation of the results reported in the current body of literature.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, Columbia University, New York, New York 10032, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mocco
authors.forename: Ricardo J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Komotar
authors.forename: Sean D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Lavine
authors.forename: Philip M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Meyers
authors.forename: E Sander
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Connolly
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Solomon
mesh_terms: D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D002532:Intracranial Aneurysm / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D012307:Risk Factors