Inadvertent Complication of a Pipeline Embolization Device for Treatment with Vertebral Artery Dissecting Aneurysm : Distal Tip Fracture of Delivery Wire

Use of the Pipeline embolization device (PED) has increased based on studies about its safety and effectiveness, and new reports that describe peri- or postprocedural complications are now emerging. We report a rare periprocedural device-related complication that occurred during endovascular treatment with the pipeline embolization device for a dissecting aneurysm on the vertebral artery. A 55-year old woman was admitted due to left medullary infarction, and angiography showed a fusiform dilatation in the left vertebral artery that was suspicious for dissecting aneurysm. Endovascular treatment with PED was planned. Under general anesthesia, the procedure was performed without significant problems and a PED was deployed in an appropriate position. However, in the final step of the procedure, the distal tip of the PED delivery wire became engaged within a small branch of the posterior cerebral artery and fractured. Fortunately, imaging studies after the procedure revealed neither hemorrhagic nor ischemic stroke, and the patient recovered without neurological morbidities except initial symptoms.