Improvement of quality of life in patients surgically treated for asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysms.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the preoperative and postoperative health-related quality of life (QOL) and psychological state of patients with asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysms (ICAs) who underwent elective surgery.


METHODS
Out of 67 patients who underwent neck clipping of ICAs, we assessed the QOL of 61 patients using Short Form-36 (SF-36); their psychological state was rated on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) before, 3 months, and 1 and 3 years after treatment.


RESULTS
The preoperative mean scores for each of the eight SF-36 domains except bodily pain were significantly lower in the study population than in the reference population. 14 (20.9%) patients experienced surgical complications defined as neurological deterioration and/or abnormal CT findings within 30 days of the operation. Despite some complications, the QOL of all operated patients returned to the mean level of the reference population 3 years after treatment. At 3 months after surgery, the scores for psychosocial activities and general health perception were transiently below the preoperative levels. According to the HADS, the patients experienced mild anxiety before the operation; it disappeared by the third postoperative month.


CONCLUSIONS
Preoperatively, patients with unruptured ICAs reported a significantly decreased QOL. It further declined transiently after elective surgery, but it returned to the mean level recorded for the reference population within 3 years. Our findings suggest that these patients derived significant QOL benefits from their surgery. Hence subjective QOL issues should be considered in deciding whether treatment-related risks and their natural history, such as their potential rupture, warrant surgery of asymptomatic unruptured ICAs.
Yamashiro
Shigeo
S
Kumamoto Rosai Hospital, 1670 Takehara-machi, Yatsushiro, Kumamoto 866-8533, Japan. KHC04160@nifty.com
Nishi
Toru
T
Koga
Kazunari
K
Goto
Tomoaki
T
Kaji
Masatomo
M
Muta
Daisuke
D
Kuratsu
Jun-ichi
J
Fujioka
Shodo
S
D000368:Aged; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D002532:Intracranial Aneurysm / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D016896:Treatment Outcome