Cerebral aneurysms – an audit

Abstract

We performed an audit to determine the profile of cerebral aneurysms at the Universitas Hospital Bloemfontein, the only government hospital with a vascular suite in the Free State and Northern Cape area. Two hundred and twenty-three government patients, diagnosed with cerebral aneurysms during the period 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2003, were included in the study. Of the 223 patients, 37.2% were male and 62.8% female. The patients’ average age was 45.5 years (range 11 - 78 years).Most patients (61.4%) were older than 40 years. The average age for males and females was 41.4 and 46.3 years, respectively, with the females being significantly older (95% CI: 1.7 - 8.2). Most patients had single aneurysms (65.5%). More females (42.9%) had multiple aneurysms compared with the males (20.5%) (95% CI females - males: 9.9 - 33.7%). Of the patients 40 years and younger, 22.1% had multiple aneurysms compared with 42.3% of the patients older than 40 years (95% CI: 7.8 - 31.7%). In our audit the females (when compared with the males) had a clear preponderance for cerebral aneurysms, were significantly older, and had a significant increase in multiplicity with an increase in age.