Hemodynamics of Ruptured and Unruptured Cerebral Aneurysms

Because the prognosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage due to the rupture of a cerebral aneurysm is very poor, preventive surgery or endovascular interventions are performed on most aneurysms. However, the risk of the interventions can outweigh the natural risk of rupture of unruptured aneurysms. Therefore, it would be highly beneficial if the risk of rupture of cerebral aneurysms could be reliably determined in order to treat only those aneurysms at higher risk. Current assessment of aneurysm rupture risk is based on geometric parameters such as size and aspect ratio. But, it is known that small aneurysms also rupture. Previous studies have suggested the use of computational models to identify hemodynamic characteristics that could be used to better assess the rupture risk of cerebral aneurysms [1]. The current study extends these previous analyses to a larger population sample and quantitative hemodynamic variables.