Cerebral aneurysms in children: are we talking about a single pathological entity?

Purpose: The objective of this article is to highlight the fact that cerebral aneurysms in children are heterogeneous unlike in the adult population.

Material And Methods: This is a retrospective review of 17 children with intracranial aneurysms who were managed at a single institution from 2004 to 2009.

Results: The median age was 12 years (range 10 months-17 years). Sixty-five percent of the aneurysms were saccular and 24% were fusiform. There was one infectious and one distal lenticulostriate aneurysm. Patients with saccular aneurysms were predominantly male and presented more commonly with intracranial hemorrhage (91%). The fusiform aneurysms were dissecting in nature or chronic with intramural thrombus and mass effect. The treatment was dependent upon the type and location of the aneurysm.

Conclusion: Pedriatic aneurysms are a heterogeneous group of intracranial arterial diseases with different etiologies, diverse morphology, and dissimilar clinical manifestations.