[Future of Cerebral Aneurysm Treatment]

Abstract

There has been an increasing role in the low invasive endovascular treatment of intracranial aneurysms. In addition to the detachable coils, the development of intracranial stents that are capable of repairing the parent artery itself has induced a significant treatment paradigm shift from open surgical to endovascular intervention. Recent evidence suggests that chronic inflammation plays a critical role in the process of intracranial aneurysm formation and rupture. It is, therefore, a natural evolution to seek drug treatments for intracranial aneurysms for growth or rupture prevention rather than any mechanical intervention. The authors review the current preclinical efforts on aneurysm drug treatments and prospective. Also covered is an emerging technology such as robotic endovascular treatment. The robotic system is capable of performing a subset of endovascular procedures such as stent-assisted aneurysm coiling. Although a lot of work needs to be done, remote health care is no longer science fiction.