Treatment of intracranial bifurcation aneurysms with "X" stent- assisted coiling: A case series and literature review

Purpose: To clarify the safety and efficacy of "X" stent-assisted coiling (X-stenting) for the treatment of intracranial bifurcation aneurysms and to review the literature. Methods: We retrospectively reported five consecutive patients with six intracranial bifurcation aneurysms who underwent X-stenting between June 2014 and June 2020. The clinical and angiographic results were analyzed. We also performed an extensive PubMed review of medical literature up to June 2021. Results: Endovascular procedures were successfully applied to all six aneurysms. No procedure-related complications were noted. Follow-up angiograms were avail-able for all patients and revealed occlusion in five aneurysms and improvement in one aneurysm. Clinical follow-up was performed for all patients, and the mRS score at follow-up was 0 in all patients. Thus, good outcomes were achieved in all patients, and no ischemic or hemorrhagic events were observed. Conclusions: X -stenting appears to be safe for treating intracranial bifurcation aneurysms and effec-tive in immediate and short-term outcome. Further research is required with well-designed, prospective studies with large sample sizes.