Understanding what a brain aneurysm is and when treatment may be needed could be potentially lifesaving.
A brain aneurysm, also called a cerebral aneurysm, is a bulge or ballooning in a blood vessel in the brain.
Aneurysms generally fall into two categories:
- Ruptured aneurysms, which are neurosurgical emergencies requiring immediate care, and
- Unruptured aneurysms, which allow time to evaluate treatment and monitoring options.
“For unruptured aneurysms, we have the ability to plan and make a decision on the best treatment upfront in a non-emergency situation,” says Mayo Clinic neurosurgeon Dr Chris Fox in the United States.
But when a brain aneurysm ruptures, prompt medical attention is required.
“Typically, when we see a patient with a ruptured aneurysm, we treat it as quickly as possible.
“That’s usually within a matter of hours because there’s a risk that the aneurysm can rerupture,” he says.
Symptoms of a ruptured aneurysm can include severe head pain, nausea, vomiting, confusion and loss of consciousness.
“The classic presentation for a ruptured aneurysm is a patient has the worst headache of their life,” he says.
Brain aneurysms are more common in women, and there may be a genetic component because aneurysms can run in families.
“But smoking and hypertension [high blood pressure] are two of the biggest risk factors for causing an aneurysm or having an aneurysm form,” says Dr Fox. – Mayo Clinic News Network/Tribune News Service
