New brain aneurysm treatment an Australian private hospital first

Mater Private Hospital Brisbane recently became the first private hospital in Australia to treat a rare and previously untreatable brain aneurysm.

The new treatment—endovascular stent reconstruction of a fusiform-shaped brain aneurysm—contributes significantly to patient outcomes and was performed by Interventional Neuroradiologist Dr Hal Rice in Mater Private's CardioVascular Catheter Lab in March.

"Until the arrival of this novel stent, this type of brain aneurysm had limited, if any, treatment options," Dr Rice said.

"Once accurately positioned and deployed in the blood vessel that has the aneurysm, the stent reinforces the damaged or weakened artery and rapidly reduces arterial blood flow to the aneurysm, instantly taking stress off the aneurysm wall and subsequently reducing the risk of brain haemorrhage."

The Silk stent, produced by French company Balt Extrusion, allows the aneurysm to clot and heal with blood flow continuing through the stent lumen to supply the brain.

While the stent is new to Australia, it has been achieving great success in Europe for over a year. Mater Private Hospital Brisbane Executive Director Don Murray said the hospital's commitment to cutting-edge care is paving the way for new procedures to be integrated into private hospitals in Australia.

"This procedure is dependent on high-quality, high-resolution imaging equipment for safe and accurate stent deployment," Mr Murray said.

"Mater Private's two state-of-the-art catheter labs provide the technology required to undertake these types of procedures which are revolutionising patient care."

Dr Hal Rice, a partner at Qscan Radiology Clinics, said the treatment is not only life-saving, but results in a fast recovery period.

"The new stent offers a viable option to patients with this rare form of brain aneurysm that could not be successfully treated with techniques and devices previously available," Dr Rice continued.

"What's more, the patient is able to be discharged from hospital two to three days post procedure following this new technique."