Traumatic aneurysm: a complication of stereotactic brain biopsy: case report

Aneurysms involving cerebral cortical vessels are distinctly unusual. An aneurysm of a frontal cortical artery was discovered when a craniotomy was performed to excise a well-differentiated astrocytoma in a 3-year-old child. The aneurysm was located at the site where a computed tomography-guided stereotactic biopsy of the tumor had been performed. Although significant complications of stereotactic procedures are rare, they are most often related to vascular injuries and can be devastating to affected patients. The complications of stereotactic procedures are reviewed, and suggestions to minimize the development of these unusual events are provided.