Aortic Aneurysms – Introduce yourself & meet others

I can only tell you that my dad had one and never had surgery on it. The dr monitored it for many years. He lived to 88 with it.
He had it many many years. It never reached 5
My husband has one also and is monitored every 6 months. It can stay the same size for a very long time, or get a little bigger.
I guess at a certain size is when it becomes a risk.
Diet is important
I heard if you gain weight it can get bigger. Not a fact as far as i know. Blood pressure is important to keep at a good range that is a fact.
Ive known the dr my husband sees for 30 years so i trust him. My husbands is 4.3

Yeah, that garden soil can be a load. Like wet mulch, or bags of cement. Oof. I guess not any more, but IDK. As for the air conditioner, we sold the farm so this was the last year for that. But I just did a 31 mile bike ride and felt great, just a steady aerobic pace except for a couple of harder pushes over and back on a fairly steep bridge. Cycling is by far my main mode of exercise these days.

As for other no nos, I have read here that we should refraing from doing planks and pushups? I find pushups almost mandatory to retain upper body strength. After hip replacement surgery took me out of my routine this past spring I found that doing just one or two pushups was difficult. That shocked me how quickly one can lose that strength as we age. Now back up to 15-20. I don't want to prematurely enter the "I've fallen and can't get up" club.

Hi there,

My name is Gary, and I’m new to this group. I recently received a diagnosis of an enlarged aortic aneurysm measuring 4.3 mm, which was discovered during a routine CT scan. In two months, I’ll be undergoing a CT scan with contrast for further evaluation.

This diagnosis has been a significant adjustment for me. I’ve always been active—running, competing in mountain bike races, and working out regularly. For now, I’ve had to put those activities on hold, and while I’m coping reasonably well mentally, it’s still a scary situation to process after living such an active lifestyle.

I’m hoping to find encouragement, support, and maybe some peace of mind from others here who understand what this experience is like. Thank you for letting me be part of this group.

Best regards,
Gary

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis. Read through these threads and I think you'll get some peace of mind.

Though the aneurysm is scary, yours is at a size that the risk of dissection is pretty low I think. (I'm not a doctor.) When my aneurysm was that size, the cardio-thoracic surgeon that monitors it, said he didn't have any restrictions on my exercise, though he recommended against becoming a powerlifter. I think that was probably on the side of being a little cavalier, but this guy has been monitoring aneurysms his entire career and he has a solid medical background. So that gives you some feel for the situation. I should say too, that I don't have any known family history that would drive the aneurysm. If you did, the situation would be different.

It's really hard to get your arms around the exercise recommendations for people with an aneurysm. I don't think anyone knows. It's tough to measure. (How would you test whatever theory you had? Your test would potentially kill the test subjects and what killed one person, might not kill another anyway. You also can't recreate the conditions that caused someone to dissect or rupture.) So I think they just measure how your BP is increased with different exercises and make rough recommendations on keeping it "safe", for some seemingly conservative definition of "safe". The video linked above is good. There are others if you dig around on YouTube some. The video above is through a group called "Aortic Hope". They have several videos from experts talking about exercise with an aneurysm or post-dissection. These sessions are recorded from live meetings that supposedly you can post questions to. I tried posting a question once, but it never was answered despite the fact that there appeared to be time for more questions. YMMV.

These groups are a great resource. It's a pretty active group. Usually you'll get helpful responses to your questions or find someone to commiserate. It's also worth searching questions you might have to find past discussions.

Good luck! Try not to worry!!

That is essentially my story, too. After being extremely active all my life I have developed CAD (familial high LDL and didn't get on a statin soon enough), a first degree heart block (Lyme disease??), and now an aortic aneurism. After the diagnosis for each one I had an OMG moment... but those passed and I am carrying on with my active life. I don't race MTB or sprint for county line signs or KOMs on the steep hills anymore, but I still ride. If you watch the very informative video above the doc says that steady aerobic exercise is fine and even beneficial. So, get back on that bike.

I recently had my second contrast dye and my TAA measured the same 4.3 as two years ago. The surveillance team recommend another one in 3 years. Fine by me as I am doing what I can to not create an issue and I monitor my arrhythmia. I personally feel blessed and continue to carry on smartly and plan like I am in perfect health even though I am in my 70's.

Appreciate the advice and kind words my friend.

I have an aortic aneurysm I think the doctor said the size is 3.9 and put me on meds to keep it from getting larger and didn’t seem to be to concerned about it but I am scared tho. I guess I’m concerned about it rupturing also have high blood pressure

You're going to be OK. You came to the right place. Now that you know you have a problem you can work at reducing your risks and prepare yourself to have open-heart surgery to repair it if necessary. You are 95% of the way there because you know you have a problem and you can do something about it. For many of us, me included we did not know we had a problem until we had a complete aortic dissection. Most people who have that sort of event don't survive. I am lucky and I am thankful to have survived in 2015, but I sure wish I would've known I had a problem because I would've addressed it.

In your case, you're much more likely to survive an aortic surgery for repair that is done in a scheduled and controlled manner, as opposed to an emergent operation which often times you won't even live long enough to get to the hospital. So, being in a 3.9 means that your doctor will likely tell you that they will not operate until you reach a 5.0. That's fairly normal, but it depends upon your size, gender, age, etc. 5 cm is the typical demarcation point for having open-heart surgery to repair the aorta. I'm so happy for you that you know you have a problem because now you can confidently make adjustments in your life that will make it less likely that you will have a sudden aortic dissection. Regular CT scans with contrast of your heart and your vasculature will save your life. Make it a habit to see your fully qualified thoracic surgeon with expertise in aortic repairs. She or he are your best friend and the sooner you get to know them and have regular appointments with them the better your chances are of surviving. Keep your blood pressure down, keep your weight down, keep your stress down, and listen to your medical team, especially your thoracic surgeon. Peace.

Hi everyone. I am 75 yo and have two aneurysms a 4.7 ascending and a 3.5AA. I have been fairly calm about them but of late sometimes not so much. My next door neighbor freaked me out about her husbands death by a ruptured AA, won't repeat.
Anyway I have consulted a Surgeon about it and will meet her again next week. Frankly I don't think I can afford it, so I am rethinking the surgery. How about any of you, any advise?
Thanks