Application value of 3D-slicer software compared with DSA in the diagnosis of intracranial aneurysms

Objective To compare the application value of 3D-slicer software and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) in the diagnosis of intracranial aneurysms. Methods The clinical data of 98 patients with suspected aneurysms admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from September 2016 to February 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients were detected by computed tomography angiography (CTA) and DSA, with DSA examination results as the gold standard. The original data of all patients were imported into 3D-slicer software for volume rendering, substraction and segment editor. 3D reconstruction of intracranial vessels was conducted to clearly display aneurysms with parameters measured accurately. Clinical significance of 3D-slicer software in diagnosis of intracranial aneurysms was analyzed. Results Among the 98 cases, 57 intracranial aneurysms were detected by DSA from 50 patients, including 6 patients with multiple aneurysms. Fifty-three aneurysms were checked out by 3D-slicer from 48 patients. The sensitivity and specificity on each patient was 96.0% and 97.9%, respectively. Detection results of the mean maximum tumor diameter and the mean aneurysm neck diameter determined by 3D-slicer were not significantly different from indexes determined by DSA (P>0.05). Conclusions Through the pre-operation virtual reconstruction, 3D-slicer can offer comprehensive information about the anatomy to help the neurosurgeon make diagnosis quickly by themselves and make individualized surgical plan. Key words: Intracranial aneurysms; 3D-slicer software; Digital subtraction angiography; Application value