1. < Stroke & Cerebrovascular Diseases

Unruptured Brain Aneurysm

Posted by badnaples @badnaples, Nov 22, 2021

Hello! I recently found out I have a 4mm ACOM during a CT scan, waiting CT angio appointment, question is....live life normally? OK, to travel (fly), exercise etc. Can't get answers from doc, they say all this will be covered during pre-op which is weeks away and in the meantime causing me anxiety not knowing what I should or should not do. Not sure if I have symptoms, various headaches, mild, dull, various areas of the head, but have those often and for long time, and stuffy nose so assume its sinus. Any help is appreciated, suppose to travel in 48 hours. I read all this about rupturing and frightens me. Is it something that would happen suddenly or gradually from a leak. Help! THank you.

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feelingthankful | @feelingthankful | Sep 15 9:11am

Possibly second opinion at Mayo.

REPLY
shamb52 | @shamb52 | Nov 7 6:11pm
In reply to @jessica79 "I have an unruptured 6mm berry brain aneurysm. It was diagnosed more than 9 years ago...." + (show)
@jessica79

I have an unruptured 6mm berry brain aneurysm. It was diagnosed more than 9 years ago. The neurosurgeon now does a follow up MRI every 2 years to keep tabs on it. I’ve had the CT angiogram . The main thing is to try to live a normal life and not to live in fear. I keep tabs on my blood pressure and stress levels but otherwise try not to stress over it. Make sure you know symptoms of what to watch for…such as sudden severe headache, etc. I hope everything turns out well for you!

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I have an unruptured 5.2 mm saccular brain aneurysm. It is in a difficult place to reach so haven't considered surgery yet but have an appt to get a second opinion this month. I am told it is good that it was detected but this isn't as reassuring as it sounds. We are still scared constantly. Am told to keep blood pressure and stress down to prevent growth.
I would love to hear surgery success stories for difficult to reach brain aneurysms. @jessica79, I hear you loud and clear. And yes, symptom of a sudden severe headache will have my husband calling an ambulance for sure.

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2 replies
shamb52 | @shamb52 | Nov 7 6:14pm
In reply to @tainan "MRA is software for Vascular test as MRI. Ask your doctor for the test. Tainan" + (show)
@tainan

MRA is software for Vascular test as MRI. Ask your doctor for the test.
Tainan

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I have a brain aneurysm as well, a hard to reach one. But I was told that the MRI and MRA tests I had at Kaiser in California didn't reveal the true size of the aneurysm. So Center for Neurosciences in Tucson did a CTA which revealed it was 5.2 mm, not 6 mm as told by Kaiser. Just ask a lot of questions and get a 2nd opinion. That's my method.

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shamb52 | @shamb52 | Nov 7 6:15pm
In reply to @jessica79 "The surgeon went on with the intent of coiling but thought the risk of rupture was..." + (show)
@jessica79

The surgeon went on with the intent of coiling but thought the risk of rupture was greater than leaving it alone and watching it because of position. My younger sister had a large aneurysm burst and ended up with about 8o coils then later had it clipped. She later passed away from it. Mine is probably genetic. I’ve heard about a new gamma laser procedure that I’m going to look into.

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Keep us updated! My aneurysm is in a very difficult location in my brain so looking at all options before getting a second opinion this month.

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njhornung | @normahorn | Nov 7 7:00pm

In rereading reports, I discovered that not only do I have a brain aneurysm (anterior communicating artery) but I also have an aneurysm in a carotid artery. Both have been stable over the last year since they were first identified. Repeat CTA already scheduled for next year. One CTA to monitor both.

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tainan | @tainan | 6 days ago
In reply to @shamb52 "I have an unruptured 5.2 mm saccular brain aneurysm. It is in a difficult place to..." + (show)
@shamb52

I have an unruptured 5.2 mm saccular brain aneurysm. It is in a difficult place to reach so haven't considered surgery yet but have an appt to get a second opinion this month. I am told it is good that it was detected but this isn't as reassuring as it sounds. We are still scared constantly. Am told to keep blood pressure and stress down to prevent growth.
I would love to hear surgery success stories for difficult to reach brain aneurysms. @jessica79, I hear you loud and clear. And yes, symptom of a sudden severe headache will have my husband calling an ambulance for sure.

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I have advice on how to help yourself stabilize your brain aneurysm, I had a similar experience. Please contact me by private message, I will explain it to you.

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2 replies
Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | 6 days ago
In reply to @tainan "I have advice on how to help yourself stabilize your brain aneurysm, I had a similar..." + (show)
@tainan

I have advice on how to help yourself stabilize your brain aneurysm, I had a similar experience. Please contact me by private message, I will explain it to you.

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Hi @tainan, for your safety, your personal contact information has been removed as per the Community Guidelines (https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/about-connect/tab/community-guidelines/). We recommend sharing personal contact information using the secure private message function rather than in the public forum.

However, I'd also like to point out the benefit of sharing here in the support group where you all receive support and information from several people and learn from each other.

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1 reply
tainan | @tainan | 5 days ago
In reply to @colleenyoung "Hi @tainan, for your safety, your personal contact information has been removed as per the Community..." + (show)
@colleenyoung

Hi @tainan, for your safety, your personal contact information has been removed as per the Community Guidelines (https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/about-connect/tab/community-guidelines/). We recommend sharing personal contact information using the secure private message function rather than in the public forum.

However, I'd also like to point out the benefit of sharing here in the support group where you all receive support and information from several people and learn from each other.

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Thank you for removing my personal information.

REPLY
mkoch | @mkoch | 5 days ago
In reply to @shamb52 "I have an unruptured 5.2 mm saccular brain aneurysm. It is in a difficult place to..." + (show)
@shamb52

I have an unruptured 5.2 mm saccular brain aneurysm. It is in a difficult place to reach so haven't considered surgery yet but have an appt to get a second opinion this month. I am told it is good that it was detected but this isn't as reassuring as it sounds. We are still scared constantly. Am told to keep blood pressure and stress down to prevent growth.
I would love to hear surgery success stories for difficult to reach brain aneurysms. @jessica79, I hear you loud and clear. And yes, symptom of a sudden severe headache will have my husband calling an ambulance for sure.

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@shamb52: I know you're getting a 2nd opinion but am curious what the doctor recommended in your initial consultation. I have a 6.5 mm aneurysm and have been told I can watch-and-wait, or coil. Mine is in a location where clipping is not an option. I chose watch-and-wait initially, I have been doing that for 9 months, but think my fear is, perhaps, keeping me from making the best choice.

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