{"id":7212,"date":"2019-08-29T08:00:56","date_gmt":"2019-08-29T13:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=7212"},"modified":"2022-04-18T09:05:05","modified_gmt":"2022-04-18T14:05:05","slug":"brain-aneurysms-the-risks-treatments-and-prevention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/brain-aneurysms-the-risks-treatments-and-prevention\/","title":{"rendered":"Brain aneurysms: The risks, treatments and prevention"},"content":{"rendered":"

Aneurysms are quite common. Experts suggest about 5% of people in the United States have an unruptured brain aneurysm, which accounts for about 6 million people \u2013 and many of them won\u2019t even know it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone who carries a brain aneurysm<\/a> is at risk of bleeding. An aneurysm can rupture based on many factors that we know, and many other factors that we don\u2019t know,\u201d said Dr. Akram Shhadeh<\/a>, who specializes in interventional neurology.<\/p>\n

What is a brain aneurysm?<\/h2>\n

A brain aneurysm occurs when a part of an artery in the brain becomes weak and stretches thin. Sometimes called a \u201cberry\u201d, it can look like a balloon or a bulge on a tire tube.<\/p>\n

Brain aneurysms develop silently, or without any symptoms, but can pose a serious threat. Aneurysms can rupture, causing a brain bleed or subarachnoid hemorrhage<\/a>, both of which can be devastating and even deadly.<\/p>\n

Some aneurysms are stable, while others are at higher risk of growing and bleeding.<\/p>\n

Treatment<\/h2>\n

Brain aneurysms can be treated several ways.<\/p>\n

Rarely, aneurysms require surgery. Most are treated by endovascular, minimally invasive techniques.<\/p>\n

\"Female<\/p>\n

Aneurysms can be often treated with traditional endovascular coiling,<\/a>\u00a0also called coil embolization. With this minimally invasive treatment, surgeons reach the aneurysm by guiding a catheter through a blood vessel in the groin up to the brain. Then, a small, soft coil is placed in the aneurysm.<\/p>\n

More complex aneurysms may be treated with a different technique, such as embolization using flow diverters. This involves deploying an implant inside the affected blood vessel, which blocks the flow of blood and allows the aneurysm to heal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a revolutionary device that enables us to treat very complex aneurysms that were untreatable in the past. We\u2019ve done many of these so far and have had great success,\u201d Dr. Shhadeh said.<\/p>\n

Creating a treatment plan for brain aneurysms requires careful consideration of many factors, including the location, size and shape of an aneurysm, the anatomy of blood vessels in a person\u2019s brain and their personal and family health history.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe make a customized plan for each patient. There\u2019s no one-size-fits-all in our approach,\u201d Dr. Shhadeh said. \u201cIt\u2019s very important that patients with a brain aneurysm go to the most equipped center because you have to be very good at what you\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Screening<\/h2>\n

Some people are at higher risk of developing a brain aneurysm.<\/p>\n

Risk factors include:<\/p>\n

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