Turkish Neurosurgery 2008 , Vol 18 , Num 3
The Incidence of Berry Aneurysm in the Iranian Population: An Autopsy Study
Babak MOSTAFAZADEH1, Esmaeil FARZANEH SHEIKH2, Tahmineh AFSHARIAN SHISHVAN3, Farnaz Nasl SERAJI4, Hojjat SALMASIAN5
1 Shahid Behashti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2 Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
3 Uromiyyeh Health Center, Uromiyyeh, Iran
4 Azad University Ardabil branch, Ardabil, Iran
5 Medical Sciences/ University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Intracranial berry aneurysms are the most common kind of aneurysms in the brain, and are caused by head trauma in 1% of cases. They may remain asymptomatic for a long time or may rupture and cause intracranial hemorrhage. These aneurysms are associated with a high mortality rate. A definitive diagnosis can be made by angiography or autopsy. We studied the cadavers of 425 people who passed away accidentally. The number and location of berry aneurysms were recorded. Twelve cases (2.82%) were found to have a single berry aneurysm and two (0.47%) had multiple aneurysms. The aneurysms had a tendency to occur in the frontal half of the Circle of Willis and in approximation of the bifurcation of arteries. The main characteristics of cases of berry aneurysm in the Iranian population were in agreement with that reported in previous Western studies. Keywords : Berry aneurysms, Autopsy study, Epidemiology, Iran
Corresponding author : Babak Mostafazadeh, swt_f@yahoo.com