What is a Cerebral Aneurysm?

A cerebral or brain aneurysm occurs when the wall of an artery weakens and stretches or balloons out, frequently forming a bubble or sac. Just like a balloon that is over inflated to the point of bursting, this defect can gradually enlarge and result in a life-threatening rupture as blood flows through the artery to the brain. An aneurysm may be present from birth (congenital) or it may develop later in life.

Although aneurysms can occur anywhere in the brain, a majority of cerebral aneurysms are found at the base of the brain just inside the skull in an area called the subarachnoid space. If an aneurysm ruptures at this point it can lead to stroke, brain damage, and death.

Aneurysms can vary in size from a few millimeters to over a centimeter, with giant “berry” aneurysms reaching well over two centimeters.

Risk Factors

Brain aneurysms can strike at any age, but are most common in individuals ranging from 40 to 60 years old. Women are more likely to develop a brain aneurysm than men by a ratio of 3:2, Cigarette smoking, family history, high cholesterol and diabetes also play a significant role in the occurrence of aneurysms. In addition infections, use of certain drugs (such as amphetamines and cocaine) and head trauma can lead to a brain aneurysm.

Symptoms of a ruptured cerebral aneurysm may include:

• Sudden onset of the WORST headache of your life Nausea and vomiting
• Sensitivity to light
• Pain in the neck and behind or above the eyes
• Blurry vision or double vision
• Loss of consciousness

Symptoms of an unruptured aneurysm (the majority of patients have no warning signs):

• Problems with peripheral vision
• Problems with speech (slurring of words)
• Difficulty with balance and coordination
• Experience short term memory loss

Time is of the essence when dealing with a ruptured aneurysm. Although, according to the Society of Interventional Neurovascular Surgery (SNIS), the risk of a rupture is one to two percent per year. Only a small percentage of patients leave the hospital in similar health to where they were before the rupture occurred.

Alternatively, elective treatment of aneurysms has been found to have a 95 percent success rate and can be undertaken using minimally invasive procedures requiring a 24-hour hospital stay and a one to two week recovery period at home.

Treatment Options

There are currently three treatment options for individuals diagnosed with an aneurysm:

1. Observation
2. Traditional open surgery using “clipping” to separate the aneurysm from the blood vessel and eliminating growth of the aneurysm
3. Endovascular surgery using coiling or Onyx®