Assessment of the Prevalence of Vascular Anomalies of the Circle of Willis Based on the Autopsy of Cadavers in Kurdish Race Between 2016 and 2017

INTRODUCTION: Cerebral arterial variations are commonly associated with cerebrovascular disease and should be considered during brain surgeries. Since some cerebrovascular diseases are seen in certain breeds, it seems that different distributions of cerebral arterial variations depend on race. AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the random incidence of vascular anomalies of the circle of Willis in autopsy of the cadavers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this study, 107 autopsy cadavers were examined. The brain was removed from the skull through standard autopsy procedures and with great care, the circles of Willis were evaluated, their main branches were accurately dissected, their anatomy was examined using a glass plate and variations were recorded. RESULTS: The mean age of the cadavers was 57.77 years, and 72.9% of them were male. The forms of circle of Willis of the cadavers were categorized according to the Lazort classification, from which 48.6% had form 1,39.3% form 4, and 12.1% form 6. Out of all patients, 51.4% had hypoplasia and 67.3% had asymmetry. There was a significant relationship between asymmetric incidence and the age of cadavers, the incidence of hypoplasia and sex of the cadavers, and the forms of the circle of Willis and the diameter of segment (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Due to the high incidence of asymmetry (67.3%) and hypoplasia (51.5%), it seems necessary to perform a complete review of the details of cerebrovascular anatomy in any surgical intervention around the circle of Willis, especially in vascular lesions of this area.