Understanding Cerebral Aneurysm: Causes, Symptoms, and Management

What is it?

cerebral aneurysm, also known as intracranial or brain aneurysm, is a condition in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral vessel causes a localized dilatation or ballooning of the blood vessel.
A brain aneurysm is a potentially life-threatening condition that can affect a person at any age. If a brain aneurysm ruptures it usually causes subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH, a bleeding under the arachnoid mater that surrounds the brain). this is an emergency situation that can have serious consequences, because the bleeding can cause damage to brain tissue.
Risk factors for developing cerebral aneurysm include: family history, some genetic diseases such as Polycystic Kidney Disease or connective tissue diseases, high blood pressure, smoking, alcohol consumption, and advanced age.

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Additional names

This group contains additional names:
- Brain Aneurysm
- Acquired caroticocavernous sinus fistula
- Aneurysm of internal carotid artery
- Aneurysm of superficial temporal artery
- Carotid cavernous fistula
- Intracranial aneurysm

Signs & symptoms

Aneurysms are unpredictable and may not show any symptoms until they rupture.
Some non-ruptured aneurysms can become symptomatic. Symptoms include headache, visual deficits, blurred or double vision, dizziness, seizures.
Symptoms of a ruptured aneurysm and subarachnoid hemorrhage include: a sudden very severe headache, nausea and vomiting, drowsiness, confusion and/or loss of consciousness, dizziness, visual abnormalities, sensitivity to light, seizures.

Diagnosis

Most aneurysms present as an incidental finding on a neuroimaging study done for another reason, in screening, or when a patient presents with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH).
If an aneurysm is suspected or if you are at known risk of having one, your doctor may order a Computed Tomographic (CT) angiography or Magnetic Resonance (MR) angiography that provides an image of your arteries.
if your doctor suspect a ruptured aneurysm, or subarachnoid hemorrhage, diagnosis can be done with a CT scan and Lumbar Puncture – in which a doctor draws fluid from your spine and checks for signs of bleeding in the brain.

Treatment

treatment may include:
* Observation and monitoring.
* lifestyle changes such as quitting smoking
* medications to control risk factors such as high blood pressure.
* Surgery - The most common options are surgical clipping, in which an aneurysm is closed using a metal clip, or endovascular coiling, in which a catheter is inserted through an artery to your aneurysm and blood flow is blocked, which ultimately closes off the aneurysm.
* A ruptured aneurysm and subarachnoid hemorrhage require urgent treatment in a hospital.

☝️ This is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult with your physician before making any medical decision.

Learn more about our editorial process for content accuracy.

Source of Information - We analyze big data of more than 23 million patients de-identified medical records from the following sources:

National Institution of Health ∙ World Health Organization ∙ University of Illinois hospital