Stent treatment of arterial dissection

Abstract

Dissections of cerebral arteries are most often treated in a conservative manner with the use of antithrombotic drugs. This is justified by the relatively benign cause of the disease after the initial event. However, there are some exceptions from this rule: Stent treatment of stenotic dissections should be considered in patients who are hemodynamically compromised or recurrently symptomatic. Dissecting pseudoaneurysms must be treated after subarachnoid hemorrhage or in traumatic cases. Parent vessel occlusion is still the best option in this condition. Coiling with soft coils or stenting + coiling may be an alternative in cases without sufficient collaterals or in unruptured dissecting aneurysms.