Ruptured cerebral aneurysms in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Two cases of ruptured aneurysms in the cerebral arteries in patients with established systemic lupus erythematosus are presented. A 32-year-old woman with a 3-year history of systemic lupus erythematosus was found to have a ruptured cerebral aneurysm at the top of the basilar artery. Another 38-year-old woman with a 4-year history of lupus erythematosus had a ruptured aneurysm in the anterior communicating artery. Both were treated surgically. Cerebral aneurysms associated with systemic lupus erythematosus are reviewed in the literature and the pathogenesis of these aneurysms is discussed.