A retrospective comparison of sac and lobe morphology between ruptured and unruptured intracranial aneurysms

There are few reliable morphologic indices to aid in the determination of an intracranial aneurysm's rupture risk. We sought to characterize morphological characteristics of aneurysm sacs and their lobes that are associated with ruptured status at time of initial evaluation with diagnostic angiography. These factors could be associated with an aneurysm's risk of rupturing. We retrospectively reviewed all aneurysms imaged with digital subtraction angiography (DSA) at a single institution over five years. Patients presenting with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) were assigned to the ruptured group, and those presenting without aSAH were assigned to the unruptured group. Angiograms were evaluated for the presence of various morphological parameters. Binary logistic regression was used to assess their associations between groups. A total of 331 aneurysms among 241 patients were included in the analysis. Posterior circulation, larger size ratio, and the presence of two or more lobes were associated with aneurysm rupture (p < 0.001 for each). Aneurysms containing a lobe with a greater height than width were observed more frequently in the ruptured group (OR 5.26, 95% CI 2.66–10.41). In the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, mean diameter had an AUC of 0.72 and an optimum threshold of 2.85 mm. For size ratio, the AUC was 0.70 and the optimum threshold was 2.02. A larger SR was observed in ruptured aneurysms. The presence of multiple lobes and greater lobe height than width were associated with rupture status as well. These factors merit investigation in a prospective study.