Neurofibromatosis type 1 with subarachnoid hemorrhage due to multiple and de novo aneurysms: a case report

Neurofibromatosis type 1 causes various lesions in many organs including the skin, and the incidence of complications with intracranial aneurysms is 9-11%. Here we report a case of neurofibromatosis type 1 with subarachnoid hemorrhage due to multiple and de novo aneurysms.

The patient was a 49-year-old Japanese woman with a history of neurofibromatosis type 1. She was transported to our hospital owing to disturbance of consciousness and was diagnosed with subarachnoid hemorrhage by computed tomography. Computed tomography angiography revealed multiple, small intracranial aneurysms, and we suspected that one of them in the peripheral branch of the left middle cerebral artery was the source of hemorrhage based on the distribution of hematoma. The patient underwent emergency surgery. Because it was difficult to identify an aneurysm in the most peripheral part of the left middle cerebral artery in the initial surgery, only one aneurysm was clipped. Later, a peripheral aneurysm was clipped using the navigation system. Because both aneurysms were small intracranial aneurysms (< 2 mm), either of them could be the source of hemorrhage. The postoperative course was good, and the patient was discharged in healthy condition. Because brain magnetic resonance imaging performed in the previous year did not find aneurysms at the same site, she was diagnosed with rupture of a de novo aneurysm. Neurofibromatosis type 1 might have caused the rupture of multiple intracranial aneurysms in a short period in this patient.

Neurofibromatosis type 1 may be complicated by the formation of multiple intracranial aneurysms in a short period.