Pseudoaneurysm of the extracranial vertebral artery; a case report

Traumatic injury of the vertebral artery is rare and only a few reports have been presented. We treated a case of iatrogenic pseudoaneurysm of the extracranial vertebral artery. A 65-year-old man complained of headache and had a pulsating mass in the soft tissue of the neck which had continued for one month after evacuation of hypertensive cerebellar hemorrhage. The left VAG revealed a large pseudoaneurysm at the third portion of the vertebral artery and the right retrograde VAG revealed agenesis of the vertebral artery. To select the proper treatment was a dilemma. This case was treated by embolization using an occluding spring embolus with direct transcutaneous puncture of pseudoaneurysm. Following this treatment, the mass and associated symptoms resolved without neurological deficit.