Prevalence of basilar artery variants: a systematic review with meta-analysis of radiological studies.

Purposes: To provide a comprehensive meta-analytic synthesis of the morphological variability of the basilar artery (BA) - specifically fenestrations, persistent trigeminal arteries (PTA), and aberrant posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) origin - and to elucidate their clinical implications...

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Publicado en:Neuroradiology Vol. 68; no. 6; pp. 1607 - 1618
Autores principales: Triantafyllou, George, Paschopoulos, Ioannis, Papadopoulos-Manolarakis, Panagiotis, Arkoudis, Nikolaos-Achilleas, Velonakis, Georgios, Papanagiotou, Panagiotis, Piagkou, Maria
Formato: diagnostic images meta analysis research systematic review tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Springer Nature Jun2026
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Jun2026
      vid: 68
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      pub: Springer Nature
      place: New York, New York
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        10.1007/s00234-026-04008-6
        194996063
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        atl: Prevalence of basilar artery variants: a systematic review with meta-analysis of radiological studies.
      aug:
        au:
          Triantafyllou, George
          Paschopoulos, Ioannis
          Papadopoulos-Manolarakis, Panagiotis
          Arkoudis, Nikolaos-Achilleas
          Velonakis, Georgios
          Papanagiotou, Panagiotis
          Piagkou, Maria
        affil: https://ror.org/04gnjpq42 Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
      sug:
        subj:
          Basilar Artery Radiography
          Basilar Artery Anatomy and Histology
          Neuroradiography
          Neurosurgery
          Human
          Systematic Review
          Meta Analysis
          PubMed
      ab: Purposes: To provide a comprehensive meta-analytic synthesis of the morphological variability of the basilar artery (BA) - specifically fenestrations, persistent trigeminal arteries (PTA), and aberrant posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA) origin - and to elucidate their clinical implications for neuroradiological and neurosurgical procedures. Methods: Following PRISMA 2020 and Evidence-Based Anatomy guidelines, a systematic literature search of three databases was performed. Inclusion criteria focused on imaging studies (CTA, MRA, DSA) reporting the prevalence of specific BA variants. Pooled prevalence was calculated using random-effects models via R programming software. Results: Thirty-five studies involving 266,696 patients were included. The aberrant PICA origin from the BA was the most frequent variant, with a pooled prevalence of 4.53% (95% CI: 0.06–14.52). BA fenestration followed with a prevalence of 1.36% (95% CI: 0.93–1.86), showing a statistically significant difference in detection between MRA (1.69%) and DSA (0.24%). The rarest variant was the PTA, calculated at 0.20% (95% CI: 0.11–0.31). Considerable heterogeneity was observed across pooled estimates. Conclusions: Although BA variations are relatively infrequent, their precise identification is a clinical necessity for procedural safety. Awareness of these variants is vital for navigating complex vascular geometries and managing the potential risk of associated aneurysms during endovascular interventions.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        diagnostic images
        meta analysis
        research
        systematic review
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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