Postoperative patient experience following different minimally invasive surgical approaches for unruptured…

Cohort studyJournal of cerebrovascular and endovascular neurosurgery· Jul 2026

Postoperative patient experience following different minimally invasive surgical approaches for unruptured intracranial aneurysms: Superciliary approach versus trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach.

Myungsoo Kim, Jaechan Park, Wonsoo Son … Yeon Ran Hong

CerebrovascularCohort studyClinical practiceQ3IF 0.9

Superciliary approach caused less wound pain than trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach

Postoperative patient experience following different minimally invasive surgical approaches for unruptured intracranial aneurysms: Superciliary approach versus trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach.

Myungsoo Kim … Yeon Ran Hong

Journal of cerebrovascular and endovascular neurosurgery · Jul 2026 · Q3 in Surgery

Purpose

This prospective study compared postoperative patient experience between the superciliary approach (supra-eyebrow incision) and the trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach (scalp incision) for unruptured anterior circulation aneurysms.

Methods

Patients (n=111) undergoing a superciliary or trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach completed a six-item daily Visual Analogue Scale (Visual Analogue Scale) symptom questionnaire (wound-related pain, generalized headache, depressed mood, fatigue, decreased appetite, and nausea) and underwent neurological examinations for 5 days postoperatively.

n = 10 patients

Results

less wound pain with the superciliary approach

16.4%

Superciliary

34%

Trans-scalp

More results

Surgical outcomes, including clip placement adequacy and complications, did not differ between groups.

Stepwise regression identified the trans-scalp approach as a dominant predictor of wound-related pain, headache, depressed mood, and fatigue.

More results

Significant mood depression (Visual Analogue Scale ≥5) occurred in 10 patients (16.4%) in the superciliary group versus 17 (34.0%) in the trans-scalp group on postoperative day 5, and depressed mood correlated significantly with fatigue, decreased appetite, nausea, and headache.

“

Conclusion · 1 of 2

The superciliary approach was associated with less postoperative pain and discomfort than the trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach in the early period after successful aneurysm clipping.

Conclusion · 2 of 2

The trans-scalp approach was a dominant determinant of wound-related pain, headache, depressed mood, and fatigue, and depressed mood correlated with other postoperative symptoms in both groups.

Postoperative patient experience following different minimally invasive surgical approaches for unruptured intracranial aneurysms: Superciliary approach versus trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach.

Postoperative patient experience following different minimally invasive surgical approaches for unruptured intracranial aneurysms: Superciliary approach versus trans-scalp lateral supraorbital approach.

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