Complications of Carotid Angiography in 939 Patients with Intracranial Aneurysms

The incidence of complications of cerebral angiography was investigated in 2, 772 carotid angiographies performed on 939 cases of intracranial aneurysms. Complications were seen in 30 cases (3.6%) and in 32 angiographies (1.2%). The incidence diminished year by year. However, when compared with the control group, the incidence of complications was apparently higher in cases of aneurysms. Complications were often seen in the acute stage after subarachnoid hemorrhagic attacks or after operations. Cerebral vasospasms seemed to be one of the important factors in the high incidence of complications. Carotid angiography should be performed with utmost care on aneurysm cases especially in the acute stage. Re-rupturing of an aneurysm during angiography was seen in only one case.