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Aortic Aneurysms – Introduce yourself & meet others
Aortic Aneurysms | Last Active: 13 hours ago | Replies (976)Comment receiving replies
Good morning,
I am 69 year old woman and my ascending aortic aneurysm was incidentally found when my primary care doctor heard an aortic murmur and an echocardiogram was done.
In the course of six months it has increased from 4.0 to 4.2 cm. I remain active doing yoga, Zumba, Pilates and hiking. The diagnosis changed my yoga practice where I no longer do inversion poses, I also limit heavy lifting. Thankfully, I have no symptoms! Notably, my provider suggested I notify my class instructors of my aneurysm. As a retired nurse, I am not eager for hospitalizations and remain hopeful that this can be treated with endovascular stenting. My preliminary research indicates that surgery is the only option at this time. :-(. I have ordered a medi alert bracelet because aneurysm dissection may clinically show up as a heart attack when in fact the treatment for this diagnosis is very different.
This is an informative forum!
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@christinedwolf as others have mentioned, that’s a fairly large increase in a very short period of time and you should question the measurement and method, it is very rare for aneurysms to grow that fast (Echos are not very precise and measurements may vary a lot). On the other hand taking care of your body with exercise (understanding the limitations of any exertion that raises your BP like lifting weights that lead you to hold your breath) is very important, you want your body at its best if and when you ever need surgery, and unfortunately yes the only current option for ascending aneurysms is OH.
Mine was found after an MTB accident, I shattered my leg and while being prepped for surgery they found a 5.2 ascending aneurysm. That was considered very large for my body size, I had to wait 2 months for my leg to recover some before having the repair as they want you walking right after. Having exercised all my life I was in very good shape and my surgery went very smoothly, out of the hospital in 5 days, back to work in 3 weeks. The surgery is tough and painful but not as painful as a broken leg.
Keep taking care of yourself and your cardiologist should help you determine the right baseline and growth rate, using CT scan, that is very important as it will let them better establish your follow up plan and of course help you control your BP. I always recommend people to find a cardiologist who specializes in aortic diseases, not all of them do and it makes a huge difference.
All the best!!!