Distal anterior cerebral artery aneurysms, traumatic and non-traumatic

Background: Distal anterior cerebral artery (ACA) aneurysms are rare and compose less than 5% of all intracranial aneurysms. Most of the aneurysms in this location are congenital, saccular ones, but it is also a well-known location for traumatic aneurysm. The mechanism of aneurysm development, clinical scenario and/or surgical difficulty are different between these two groups. Patients and methods: Between March 2005 to February 2006, 6 cases of distal ACA aneurysms were treated at the Department of Neurosurgery, Fujita Health University, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The clinical presentations, neurological findings, and treatment were analyzed. Of 6 patients, 2 were male and 4 were female, aged from 66-79 years. Of 6 cases, one was traumatic aneurysm, which occurred 2 months after a fall injury. Of the 5 congenital aneurysms, one was unruptured, the other 4 were all ruptured. One patient had multiple aneurysms. Conclusions: We believe that there are differences between the congenital and traumatic aneurysms in respect to the mechanism of development, aneurysm location, and treatment difficulties.