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Backgrounds: Periventricular anastomosis (PA), which is a novel term for extended collateral vessels in moyamoya disease (MMD), is reportedly associated with a high risk of intracranial hemorrhage in adult patients. The present study aimed to clarify the similarities and the differences in the development of PA between three MMD groups, classified by age at the time of diagnosis and clinical phenotype., Methods: This study included 232 hemispheres of 132 patients with MMD who underwent surgical revascularization. The subjects were classified into child ischemic (CI) group, adult ischemic (AI) group, and adult hemorrhagic (AH) group. We evaluated the lenticulostriate (LSA), thalamic (THA), choroidal (ChA), anterior choroidal (AChA), and posterior choroidal (PChA) anastomosis as well as the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) involvement. The PA scores and the sums of each grade of LSA, THA, and ChA anastomosis were also calculated in all of the cases., Results: In a multiple comparison test, the PA scores (P < 0.01), LSA (P < 0.01), and ChA anastomosis (P = 0.013) were more prominent in the CI than in the AI group. The PA scores (P < 0.01) and LSA (P = 0.011), ChA (P < 0.01), AChA (P < 0.01), and PChA anastomosis (P = 0.016) were more prominent in the AH group than in the AI group. The CI and AH groups showed similar characteristics except for PCA involvement. After multivariate adjustments using the AI group as a reference group, the PA scores and the positive rates of LSA and ChA anastomosis remained significantly higher in the CI and AH groups., Conclusion: The patterns of PA development in the CI and AH groups were similar in that they were more prominent than in the AI group. These findings may contribute to a better understanding of the progression of ischemic and hemorrhagic MMD.

Background: While periventricular anastomosis, a unique abnormal vasculature in moyamoya disease, has been studied in relation to intracranial hemorrhage, no study has addressed its change after bypass surgery. The authors sought to test whether direct bypass surgery could restore normal periventricular vasculature., Methods: Patients who had undergone direct bypass surgery for moyamoya disease at a single institution were eligible for the study. Baseline, postoperative, and follow-up magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) scans were scheduled before surgery, after the first surgery, and 3 to 6 months after contralateral second surgery, respectively. Sliding-thin-slab maximum-intensity-projection coronal MRA images of periventricular anastomoses were scored according to the three subtypes (lenticulostriate, thalamic, and choroidal anastomosis). Baseline and postoperative MRA images were compared to obtain a matched comparison of score changes in the surgical and nonsurgical hemispheres within individuals (intra-individual comparison)., Results: Of 110 patients, 42 were identified for intra-individual comparisons. The periventricular anastomosis score decreased significantly in the surgical hemispheres (median, 2 versus 1; p < 0.001), whereas the score remained unchanged in the nonsurgical hemispheres (median, 2 versus 2; p = 0.57); the score change varied significantly between the surgical and nonsurgical hemispheres (p < 0.001). Of the 104 periventricular-anastomosis-positive hemispheres undergoing surgery, 47 (45.2%) were assessed as negative in the follow-up MRA. Among the subtypes, choroidal anastomosis was most likely to be assessed as negative (79.7% of positive hemispheres)., Conclusions: Periventricular vasculature can be restored after direct bypass. The likelihood of correction of choroidal anastomosis is a subject requiring further studies.

Background: Bypass surgery for complex intracranial aneurysms (IAs) results in drastic blood flow changes in intracranial arteries. The aim of the study was to elucidate how vessels adapt to blood flow changes after bypass surgery with phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC-MRI)., Methods: This is a prospective observational study to assess changes of the blood flow in intracranial arteries after bypass surgery for IAs. Flow rates and vessel diameters were measured with PC-MRI in 52 intracranial arteries of 7 healthy volunteers and 31 arteries of 8 IA patients who underwent bypass surgery. Wall shear stress (WSS) was calculated with the Hagen-Poiseuille formula. In 18 arteries of 5 patients, the same measurement was performed 1, 3, and 12 months after surgery., Results: PC-MRI showed a strong positive correlation between the flow rate and the third power of vessel diameter in both healthy volunteers (r = 0.82, P < 0.0001) and IA patients (r = 0.90, P < 0.0001), indicating the constant WSS. Of the 18 arteries in 5 patients, WSS increased in 7 arteries and decreased in 11 arteries immediately after surgery. In the WSS-increased group, WSS returned to the preoperative value in the third postoperative month. In the WSS-decreased group, WSS increased in the 12th month, but did not return to the preoperative level., Conclusions: In a physiological state, WSS was constant in intracranial arteries. Changed WSS after bypass surgery tended to return to the preoperative value, suggesting that vessel diameter and flow rate might be controlled so that WSS remains constant.

Background: The potential for late cerebrovascular events following surgical revascularization presents a challenge in the treatment of pediatric moyamoya disease. Limited information is available on the incidence of such events after direct bypass. The objective of this descriptive study was to examine the incidence of late cerebrovascular events after direct bypass for pediatric moyamoya disease., Methods: The study cohort comprised consecutive patients with moyamoya disease who had undergone direct bypass at less than 18 years of age in the authors' institute between 1978 and 2003. They were prospectively followed until the end of the study period or, if applicable, the time of death., Results: Fifty-six of 58 enrolled patients (96.6%) were followed for a mean period of 18.1 years. Four patients experienced late cerebrovascular events, comprising one stroke and three hemorrhages, an average of 13 years after surgery, one of whom experienced a fatal second hemorrhage. The only late ischemic stroke in the cohort occurred after a severe head injury and emergent craniotomy. The incidence of late cerebrovascular events was 0.41% per year (95% confidence interval, 0.15-1.08); 10-year, 20-year, and 30-year cumulative incidences were 1.8%, 7.3%, and 13.1%, respectively., Conclusions: Despite the efficacy of surgical revascularization, pediatric patients remain at risk of future cerebrovascular events, especially hemorrhage, after reaching adulthood and thus require careful long-term follow-up.