Reconstruction of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery in the treatment of giant aneurysms

Abstract

✓ Two techniques of revascularizing the posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) during aneurysm surgery are presented. One involves transposition of the PICA to the vertebral artery proximal to the aneurysm using a superior temporal artery (STA) as a graft. This is used in cases in which the PICA has branched off from the wall of the giant vertebral artery aneurysm. The other technique involves end-to-end anastomosis of the PICA after excision of a giant distal PICA aneurysm located at the cranial loop near the roof of the fourth ventricle. The reconstructions of the PICA described here are surgical procedures designed to preserve normal blood flow in the PICA in patients treated for giant aneurysms involving that artery.