Ruptured aneurysm at the perforating artery supplying the insula: case report.

Abstract

Aneurysms originating from perforating branches of the middle cerebral artery are quite rare. Most of them arise from the lenticulostriate arteries, frequently located within the basal ganglia. We report a perforating artery aneurysm that was entirely embedded within the limen insulae. A 41-year-old man presented with an insular hematoma without subarachnoid hemorrhage caused by rupture of a small aneurysm on a perforating artery of the proximal middle cerebral artery supplying the insula. This rare aneurysm was resected via the transsylvian-insular approach. Although very rare, perforating artery aneurysms should be considered in young or middle-aged patients with an atypical intracerebral hematoma. This report discusses radiological and surgical characteristics of this unusual aneurysm.