A brain aneurysm is rarely on anyone’s mind. But it’s estimated 5 million Americans are harboring a secret that could burst with little warning.
“Aneurysms are probably more common than you think. We find them in patients who may come in after a trauma or had a head CT or MRI scan or unrelated symptoms,” says Dr. Greg Velat, who is a neurosurgeon with Lee Memorial Health System.
A ballooning blood vessel, aneurysms develop in a weak spot. Their development is linked to blood pressure.
“What happens is as the blood pressure pounds on the blood vessel it can expand. Think of a balloon- as a blood expands the skin of the balloon thins. So when that happens to a blood vessel, as the skin thins it can rupture,” says Dr. Gary Correnti, who is a neurosurgeon on the medical staff of Lee Memorial Health System.
Results are often catastrophic. If an aneurysm bursts, it causes a bleeding or hemorrhagic stroke that typically results in brain damage or death.
“When we’re talking specifically brain aneurisms, our biggest concern is hemorrhage. Forty percent of people who have a brain aneurysm die before they get to the hospital,” says Dr. Correnti.
Brain aneurysms are more common in adults than in children and more common in women than in men. A number of factors can contribute to weakness in an artery wall and increase the risk of forming a brain aneurysm.
“High blood pressure is one of the risk factors for developing an aneurism as well as smoking. There is a little propensity of family history. So people who have a direct first descendant or first generation relative with an aneurism, often can get screened,” says Dr. Correnti.
The majority of brain aneurysms never present a problem.
“There’s a psychological impact to having an aneurism in the brain but in some cases if it’s a small aneurysm and it appears regular it may be fine just to watch it and get a scan in a year,” says Dr. Velat.
A large aneurysm or one in delicate location may be clipped or coiled to prevent a rupture and take the pressure off a worried mind.
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Lee Memorial Health System in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of medical care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For nearly a century, we’ve been providing our community with everything from primary care treatment to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.
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