Experimental Embolic Occlusion of a Single Leptomeningeal Artery

Abstract

Despite many advances in the study of the cerebral circulation of man and other animals, little is known of the anatomy and especially of the pathophysiology of the smaller leptomeningeal arteries and their intraparenchymal terminations. Most previous studies have been performed on the larger vessels representing the highest "levels" of the cerebral vasculature. The concentration of work on the carotids and the anterior, middle, and posterior cerebral arteries has resulted in much information on effects, or lack of effects, when these vessels are occluded. Although the lower levels of vessels have been observed through windows, relatively little information has been obtained on the deep distribution of their branches or the consequences of occlusion. Pfeifer^1-3 extensively studied vessels of the lower levels by injection techniques and with preparations from congested brains. His angioarchitectonic studies revealed that the arteries penetrating the cerebral cortex have sparse anastomoses, but the capillaries communicated freely.