• Ji Heon Hong, Byung Yeon Choi, Chul Hoon Chang, Seong Ho Kim, Young Jin Jung, Woo Mok Byun, and Sung Ho Jang.
• Department of Physical Therapy, Sun Moon University, Asan-si, Chungnam, Republic of Korea.
• Neurosurgery. 2012 Apr 1;70(4):819-23.

BackgroundAfter rupture of an anterior communicating artery (ACoA) aneurysm, the anterior cingulum and the fornix can be vulnerable to injury. However, very little is known about this topic.ObjectiveTo investigate injuries of the cingulum and fornix in patients with an ACoA aneurysm rupture with diffusion tensor tractography.MethodsEleven consecutive patients with an ACoA aneurysm rupture and 11 age- and sex-matched normal control subjects were recruited. Diffusion tensor imaging was scanned at an average of 54.1 days (range, 29-97 days) after onset of ACoA aneurysm rupture.ResultsWe found that 6 (54.5%) and 7 (63.6%) of 11 patients revealed no trajectory of the anterior cingulum and the fornical body on diffusion tensor tractography, respectively. In terms of diffusion tensor imaging parameters, we found that the fractional anisotropy value and tract volume of the cingulum and fornix were decreased (P < .05) and that mean diffusivity values were increased (P < .05), except for those of the left fornix, which showed no difference (P > .05).ConclusionWe found injuries of the cingulum and fornix in patients with an ACoA aneurysm rupture. It is our belief that sustained memory impairment of patients with an ACoA aneurysm rupture might be related to injury of the cingulum and fornix. Therefore, we recommend evaluation of the cingulum and fornix with diffusion tensor tractography for patients with an ACoA aneurysm rupture.

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