ARTICLE SUMMARY:
Founded by vascular neurosurgeon Luis Savastano, Endovascular Horizons has created a new transvascular way to the brain to simplify the treatment of subdural hematomas. That's only the beginning though; this new minimally invasive entryway could potentially enable the delivery of drugs, neural interfaces, or neurostimulation electrodes to the brain.
Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH), a bleed that occurs between the innermost layer of the skull and the brain, is one of the most common conditions neurosurgeons treat. In the US each year surgeons treat approximately 60,000 patients with CSDH to alleviate dangerously high intracranial pressure, most of them over the age of 65 (the incidence in that age group is 100 cases per 100,000 people). A subdural hematoma can happen to anybody after a head trauma, but the elderly are disproportionately affected because of the brain shrinkage they experience as they age, which stretches the veins bridging the brain to dura making them susceptible to rupture. In addition, older people are more likely to already have a higher bleeding risk because they’re taking blood thinners for co-morbidities.
The conventional treatment for CSDH involves surgically drilling one or two burr holes in the cranium (or removing part of it) and aspirating out the clot and fluid. Following this surgical procedure, patients will proceed to the ICU with the drain protruding from the skull to complete the drainage process, where they will remain for one to three days.
