Intracerebral hemorrhage due to a rete middle cerebral artery-related rupture of a distal lenticulostriate artery aneurysm: Two case reports

Abstract

Background: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) after a rete middle cerebral artery (MCA)-related rupture of a distal lenticulostriate artery (LSA) aneurysm is extremely rare, only five cases have been reported in the previous literature. Case descriptions: In this study, we report two cases of a rete MCA-related rupture wherein LSA aneurysms were treated with endovascular and medical therapy. A 69-year-old woman with a right rete MCA developed a right putaminal hematoma due to the rupture of a right dilated LSA aneurysm. As the parent LSA arose proximal to the abnormal arterial network, we first planned endovascular aneurysmal embolization. However, due to penetration of the parental artery with a microwire, we operated on the parental artery occlusion. The aneurysm disappeared after treatment without any ischemic lesion in the right cerebral hemisphere. The second case was a 72-year-old woman with a right putaminal hematoma. As the LSA was thin and arose from the anomaly itself, the patient was treated conservatively without surgical intervention. Angiography performed 14 days after onset demonstrated spontaneous disappearance of the aneurysm. Conclusion: There is no common consensus on treatment strategies for rete MCA-related distal LSA aneurysms. We propose that parental artery occlusion and conservative observation can be treatment options for this rare type of aneurysm.

Keywords

• Intracerebral hemorrhage
• Lenticulostriate artery aneurysm
• Rete MCA
• Unfused MCA
• Twig-like MCA