Induction of experimental aneurysms on the rat common carotid artery using a microsurgical CO₂ laser

Abstract

Aneurysms were produced on the common carotid artery of rats by milliwatt CO2 laser welding of an adventitia patch over a hole. Sixty-nine animals were operated on. Aneurysms were present in 35 animals (51%), 7 of which ruptured spontaneously. The time to aneurysm formation was 1 week or longer. The adventitia patch aneurysm model has features (reliability, minimal vessel manipulation, histology similar to human berry aneurysm, and spontaneous bleeding tendency) that make it theoretically suitable for the induction of intracranial aneurysms in experimental animals. The microsurgical skills required to create and dissect the aneurysm make our experimental aneurysm useful as a teaching model in the development of microneurovascular surgery skills.

Animal Models of Aneurysms

“…This also led to the formation of an aneurysm. 61 The aneurysm was larger if the animals were hypertensive. 62 Application of the same technique to the aortic bifurcations in rats produced saccular aneurysms similar to that observed in the cerebral vasculature.…”

Transrectal Ultrasound Assessment of Murine Aorta and Iliac Arteries

“…These models involve atherosclerosis [1,2], genetic defects [3,4], hemodynamic flow [5,6], altered metabolism [7,8], mechanical and chemical injury [9,10], inflammation [11], and elastase infusion [12,13]. The murine model is ideal due to its short life cycle, prolific progeny, and extensively studied genome [14,15].…”