Intracranial arterial aneurysms in childhood: more recent considerations

Nineteen children with congenital, mycotic, traumatic and tumoral arterial aneurysms were studied neuroradiologically. The important role of computed tomography (CT) was shown in two traumatic aneurysm cases where bleeding was clinically inapparent. Among the unique cases described was a boy with a pituitary tumor in whom an aneurysm was discovered incidentally; coexistence of these lesions in childhood has not been documented previously. Nor has a tumoral aneurysm been mentioned (the case reported had a surrounding primary anaplastic sarcoma). Rare cases included a cavernous carotid mycotic aneurysm and infants with hemorrhage from congenital distal middle cerebral artery aneurysms. Marked cellular responses within the aneurysm walls, believed to be a reaction to hemorrhage, were noted in both infants.