Intracranial Aneurysms and Heredity

To the Editor:— In the Nov 23, 1964, issue (QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS,JAMA190:791), the question of intracranial aneurysms and heredity is discussed by Dr. V. A. McKusick, who came to the conclusion that this lesion has only a very modest tendency to familial aggregation. I would like to report that about 20 years ago I had the opportunity to observe two brothers and one sister who suffered from this lesion. Both brothers were my patients. One died of intracranial disease and the diagnosis was varified by autopsy. The other had a classic picture with subarachnoid hemorrhage followed by unilateral loss of vision, drop of eyelid, and impairment of eye movement. The sister had a similar attack of subarachnoid hemorrhage that was treated elsewhere. All three siblings were in their third decade of life and experienced a rupture of the lesion within a period of two to three years.