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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@thirdbird

Diagnosed with an aneurism in my “posterior communicating artery” but don’t know the size yet. Can any of you tell me what is considered small, medium and large, or does it depend on the artery?

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Recalling Neurosurgeon conversation, below 5mm is considered small. Between 5 & 7 mm is medium and over 7 is large

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@thirdbird

Diagnosed with an aneurism in my “posterior communicating artery” but don’t know the size yet. Can any of you tell me what is considered small, medium and large, or does it depend on the artery?

Jump to this post

I was diagnosed a year ago with a "posterior communicating artery" aneurysm. Unfortunately, it was found during an MRI check up for a meningioma I had removed via brain surgery. I wasn't in a space to deal with my new diagnosis, the aneurysm, so I did nothing for 6 months. I happened upon the most informative site regarding aneurysms that answered all my questions. Dr. Omar Chouddhri is a neurosurgeon at the University of Pennsylvania. I found a 35 minute presentation given by him on You Tube.com by typing in "Omar Chouddhri aneurysm video" in the search bar. He explained everything in a way a non-medical person could understand. I had already researched many websites with information on aneurysms through Mayo Clinic , Cleveland Clinic, Stanford, etc. but after watching that video I made my decision that I needed to follow up and have it coiled. So I took a quick mini-vacation to Hawaii and then came home and got serious about conferring with a neurosurgeon who specializes in aneurysm repairs. I had the procedure a week before Christmas. Not a big deal. And to answer your question, my understanding is that generally, any aneurysm over 5 mm needs to have an intervention of some kind. Once again, as with meningiomas of the brain, one's age, the location of the aneurysm, and it's size all play into the decision of how to deal with it. Hope that helps.

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@raisanicole

Recalling Neurosurgeon conversation, below 5mm is considered small. Between 5 & 7 mm is medium and over 7 is large

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Thank you !

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@mkoch

I was diagnosed a year ago with a "posterior communicating artery" aneurysm. Unfortunately, it was found during an MRI check up for a meningioma I had removed via brain surgery. I wasn't in a space to deal with my new diagnosis, the aneurysm, so I did nothing for 6 months. I happened upon the most informative site regarding aneurysms that answered all my questions. Dr. Omar Chouddhri is a neurosurgeon at the University of Pennsylvania. I found a 35 minute presentation given by him on You Tube.com by typing in "Omar Chouddhri aneurysm video" in the search bar. He explained everything in a way a non-medical person could understand. I had already researched many websites with information on aneurysms through Mayo Clinic , Cleveland Clinic, Stanford, etc. but after watching that video I made my decision that I needed to follow up and have it coiled. So I took a quick mini-vacation to Hawaii and then came home and got serious about conferring with a neurosurgeon who specializes in aneurysm repairs. I had the procedure a week before Christmas. Not a big deal. And to answer your question, my understanding is that generally, any aneurysm over 5 mm needs to have an intervention of some kind. Once again, as with meningiomas of the brain, one's age, the location of the aneurysm, and it's size all play into the decision of how to deal with it. Hope that helps.

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Thank you! I will watch the video tonight.

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