BILATERAL CAVERNOUS ANEURYSMS - DISCUSSIO N OF A PROBLEMATIC CASE WITH REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

<< Mirror >> cavernous aneurysms are exceptional; only 66 such cases h aving been published until mid-1996. We report on a 68-year-old woman who presented for left exophthalmos, diplopia and neuralgia. MR and an giography demonstrated a giant symptomatic aneurysm on the left side a nd an incidental small one on the right side. The patient was treated in two sessions : first, she had selective embolization of her right a neurysm; two weeks later, her left carotid artery was sacrified with d etachable balloons: after a well-tolerated occlusion test. This origin al and successful approach permitted to achieve a reasonable goal when considering the patient's age, operative morbidity, risk of future co mplications and final result. A review of the pathophysiology, clinica l manifestations and therapeutic indications is presented and discusse d.