Intraoperative assessment of aneurysm clip placement by intravenous fluorescein angiography

Clip occlusion of intracranial aneurysms can be difficult, and intraoperative misadventures are still fairly frequent. Many complications are caused by improper clip placement. Intraoperative conventional arteriography is time consuming and requires expensive image-intensifying equipment. As an alternative, we have found that the bolus intravenous administration of fluorescein produces the necessary intra-arterial dye concentration for the direct visualization of the perforating medium and large arteries in proximity to a clipped aneurysm. The technique is straightforward, requiring little additional operating time and an inexpensive set of disposable optical filters. No adverse reactions to fluorescein have been observed.