1. < Aortic Aneurysms

Aortic Aneurysms – Introduce yourself & meet others

Posted by Kanaaz Pereira, Connect Moderator @kanaazpereira, Feb 16, 2018

Welcome to the Aortic Aneurysms group on Mayo Clinic Connect.

An aortic aneurysm is a bulge in the wall of the aorta. The aorta begins deep in the heart as it emerges from the powerful left ventricle, gently arching over the heart, descending into the chest, and finally into the abdomen. Some aortic aneurysms can be harmless; others can lead to catastrophic problems. I invite you to follow this group and connect with others, share experiences, exchange useful information, and learn about aortic aneurysms.

Get started rby clicking the +FOLLOW icon on the group page here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/aneurysms/

There are some great conversations going on right now that I think you’ll like. Grab a cup of tea, or beverage of your choice, and lets chat. Why not start by introducing yourself?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Aortic Aneurysms Support Group.

jpmerk | @jpmerk | Jul 27, 2019
In reply to @pete398 "It is a shock to discover that you have an aneurysm. I was told I had..." + (show)
@pete398

It is a shock to discover that you have an aneurysm. I was told I had a 3.8 cm infra renal aneurysm 13 years ago. It is now 5.0 cm and I am 80. I lead an active life with no limitations. With my complicated anatomy, the surgeon wants to wait until it reaches 6.0 cm before repair.
Sometimes they grow slow or not at all and sometimes they grow fast and need to be repaired. The repair has risks as well as benefits and most cardiologists say the the risks outweigh the benefits when the size is under 5.5 cm for men and 5.0 for women, It also depends on the particular anatomy as well as your family history and your life habits. I was a smoker and stopped when I learned I had the aneurysm. In the past 13 years, I have kept my blood pressure low with medications, exercised 5 days a week on a treadmill and monitored the growth yearly and now every 6 months sometimes with ultrasound and now with CT scans.
My advise is to find a cardiologist or cardiac surgeon you trust and discuss what is the best option for you. If you don't like the advise, get a second opinion. Good luck .

Jump to this post

Appreciate your reply that I'll keep in mind if anything but watchful waiting is recommended.

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kimspr3 | @kimspr3 | Jul 27, 2019
In reply to @kimspr3 "MY MOTHER HAD AN ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM IN HER 70'S. SHE CAME TROUGH SURGERY VERY WELL...." + (show)
@kimspr3

MY MOTHER HAD AN ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM IN HER 70'S. SHE CAME TROUGH SURGERY VERY WELL. MY QUESTION, IS IT HEREDITARY?

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My mothers Dr's told me it is Hereditary. I'm checked, so far so good.

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robert6767 | @robert6767 | Jul 27, 2019

Hi my name is Robert Rowland
I'm an aortic aneurysm and dissection survivor I had my surgery 2 years ago never knew I had anything that was wrong with me and woke up in ICU 3 days after surgery back in 2017. I'm not absolutely sure if I'm on the right page or not but I've been looking for someone to talk to or other people to talk to that have gone through this and survived. If you could let me know if I'm on the right page or where I need to be would be greatly appreciate it thank you for your time

Robert Rowland

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1 reply
anniejam | @anniejam | Jul 27, 2019

Thanks for connecting. I have a 4.1 aortic ascending aneurysm. No surgery yet.

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robert6767 | @robert6767 | Jul 27, 2019

That's great. I hope you never have to I was 49 I never ever knew I had one. I was hanging out with friends one night and I remember saying I needed to leave I don't remember getting in my car or crashing into the neighbors garage or anything I got woke up three days later in ICU. Talk about getting the shock of your life

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Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 28, 2019
In reply to @rickbenson "I am a very active, falconry, cattle farm, hunting, fishing, gardening,73 year old male with a..." + (show)
@rickbenson

I am a very active, falconry, cattle farm, hunting, fishing, gardening,73 year old male with a recently discovered 4.2 thoracic aortic aneurysm. For the past few months I have been considering requesting surgery. With the suggested limitations and stress with knowing this time bomb is ticking I believe this is the best decision. Your thoughts and professional guidance please. crb

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Hello @rickbenson and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect!

I notice that you asked for thoughts and professional guidance. As you may know, Connect is a patient-to-patient support group where we offer our own experiences, but we do not offer "professional advice" because we are patients like you and not as a general rule, medical professionals.

After reading your post and seeing that you have been active I'm sure that the discovery of an aortic aneurysm must have been a surprise to you. If you care to share more: How was this aneurysm discovered? Were you having symptoms of some type? What type of test did the doctor request that made this diagnosis? Are you taking any medications now to help control this? Have you considered a second opinion from a well-known heart center regarding the best approach to this problem?

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Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 28, 2019
In reply to @robert6767 "Hi my name is Robert Rowland I'm an aortic aneurysm and dissection survivor I had my..." + (show)
@robert6767

Hi my name is Robert Rowland
I'm an aortic aneurysm and dissection survivor I had my surgery 2 years ago never knew I had anything that was wrong with me and woke up in ICU 3 days after surgery back in 2017. I'm not absolutely sure if I'm on the right page or not but I've been looking for someone to talk to or other people to talk to that have gone through this and survived. If you could let me know if I'm on the right page or where I need to be would be greatly appreciate it thank you for your time

Robert Rowland

Jump to this post

@robert6767 Hello Robert, I see that you are new to Connect, welcome!
I appreciate you sharing your story. The sudden diagnosis of your aneurysm must have been quite a shock to both you and your friends and family. If you are comfortable sharing more: Had you had any symptoms beforehand that might have been related to the aneurysm? How are you feeling now since your surgery? Do you have many restrictions now about lifting, exercise, etc.?

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robert6767 | @robert6767 | Jul 28, 2019

@hopeful33250 Good morning. I have no problem sharing my story and what happened to me. To be honest I am glad to have found this, I have looking for some sort of support ever since everything happened to me. At the time I don't think I had any symptoms. Even the night it happened I felt pretty tired, however I had been out of town the day before and had been back in town a few hours, just thought I was tired from traveling. I was told if I had just went to bed that night off instead of going out I would have never woke up the next day. That's probably the scariest part of it all. Because I chose to have dinner with friends and watch a sporting event with them and was not home is the reason I am still here today. Since everything at the beginning it was kind of hard to get going ( at least for me). I am 6'0 and 220. I was shocked at much I had lost in just 10 days in the hospital. I remember the first day they got me up walking and the entire time saying that this shouldn't be this hard. That first time the nurses got up and walking I think I walked a total of 75 feet (maybe). I couldn't believe that walking was the hard and two that little distance whipped my butt. The road back isn't terrible at least it wasn't for me, the hardest part was coming to terms with what had happened. I really glad I found this yesterday. I really need this. It really stinks that there is nothing for us survivors in way of support groups.

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1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jul 28, 2019
In reply to @robert6767 "@hopeful33250 Good morning. I have no problem sharing my story and what happened to me. To..." + (show)
@robert6767

@hopeful33250 Good morning. I have no problem sharing my story and what happened to me. To be honest I am glad to have found this, I have looking for some sort of support ever since everything happened to me. At the time I don't think I had any symptoms. Even the night it happened I felt pretty tired, however I had been out of town the day before and had been back in town a few hours, just thought I was tired from traveling. I was told if I had just went to bed that night off instead of going out I would have never woke up the next day. That's probably the scariest part of it all. Because I chose to have dinner with friends and watch a sporting event with them and was not home is the reason I am still here today. Since everything at the beginning it was kind of hard to get going ( at least for me). I am 6'0 and 220. I was shocked at much I had lost in just 10 days in the hospital. I remember the first day they got me up walking and the entire time saying that this shouldn't be this hard. That first time the nurses got up and walking I think I walked a total of 75 feet (maybe). I couldn't believe that walking was the hard and two that little distance whipped my butt. The road back isn't terrible at least it wasn't for me, the hardest part was coming to terms with what had happened. I really glad I found this yesterday. I really need this. It really stinks that there is nothing for us survivors in way of support groups.

Jump to this post

@robert6767

I so appreciate you sharing your story. I'm glad that you found Connect and have a place to share your experiences. You are correct when you say that it is very difficult to go through a life-altering experience as you did and not find other survivors to share with. As you have shared your experience you will undoubtedly help others.

As I read about you spending several days in ICU I would suggest you also take a look at discussions we have at Connect on Post-ICU experiences. Here are the links to those discussions:

https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/post-intensive-care-syndrome-pics-lets-talk/ and
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/what-did-you-find-most-surprising-once-you-were-out-of-the-icu/. In these discussions you will meet an ICU nurse, @andreab. You will find her very responsive to your experience and your current feelings.

Please feel free to share in these discussion groups as well.

REPLY
latrisha | @latrisha | Jul 28, 2019
In reply to @pete398 "It is a shock to discover that you have an aneurysm. I was told I had..." + (show)
@pete398

It is a shock to discover that you have an aneurysm. I was told I had a 3.8 cm infra renal aneurysm 13 years ago. It is now 5.0 cm and I am 80. I lead an active life with no limitations. With my complicated anatomy, the surgeon wants to wait until it reaches 6.0 cm before repair.
Sometimes they grow slow or not at all and sometimes they grow fast and need to be repaired. The repair has risks as well as benefits and most cardiologists say the the risks outweigh the benefits when the size is under 5.5 cm for men and 5.0 for women, It also depends on the particular anatomy as well as your family history and your life habits. I was a smoker and stopped when I learned I had the aneurysm. In the past 13 years, I have kept my blood pressure low with medications, exercised 5 days a week on a treadmill and monitored the growth yearly and now every 6 months sometimes with ultrasound and now with CT scans.
My advise is to find a cardiologist or cardiac surgeon you trust and discuss what is the best option for you. If you don't like the advise, get a second opinion. Good luck .

Jump to this post

Thanks for sharing. I noticed you was at 3.8. Before it started growing. I’m so confused with what’s going on. My first echo came back and I noticed my ascending was 3.7. But they didn’t say any thing about it. Just saying my heart was good. So I went to a cardiologist and he said the same but I had a CTA done and it came back my ascending was 3.3 with no aneurysm present anywhere. Went back to the doctor he re measure it now it’s 3.6. All he is saying come back in 6 months for me to check your heart. I’m asking is this an aneurysm. He responded was I’m not sure. This is so confusing to me. Maybe you can give me a lil advice on this. I see that you have been threw it. Thanks

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