Thanks Janet. I am doing all the research because Kasey is in denial, but we are getting some really good information from a variety of sources: this site, doctors we know, and an incredible friend who sells stents and coils and knows all the neurosurgeons in the country. Even though he sells the stents, his own research (and the doctors he is talking to who have reviewed Kasey's scans) are so far steering us toward the clipping. Her aneurysm is in a good place for clipping-- it is pretty straight-forward. I am less scared now. It's good to hear you weren't that tired and that the scar wasn't bad. I've heard an alarming number of cases of coiling failing!
Thanks again for helping us out, and best of luck to you for good health.
Hi Diana - I too tend to go, go, go. I have two small kids and am a very hands on mom. I am also an engineer who works full time. I understand pushing through and not having much patience for recuperating.
I was tired for a few weeks but just took daily naps to rest and help with healing. I was off pain meds about a week and a half after surgery and remember feeling good at the six week mark. I went back to work after 8 weeks and had a few headaches as I sit in front of a computer all day but no more after the second week. My job is technical and demanding and I had no problem returning. Then it was home to run around with my kids.
If Kasey has surgery, how much time will she have before school starts? Based on my experience, 8 weeks was a good amount of recovery time. I tried really hard to rest and focus on my health during that time and found I felt good when I went back to work.
This is great advice, thanks. If she has the surgery in May or June she won't have to go to school until the fall, so she should be good! Your account really helped-- I hope that is Kasey's experience! Boy, you are a go-getter!
We went for a second opinion and that doctor did not agree with Dr. Sekhar, the head of neurosurgery at UW, that Kasey's aneurysm had grown at all! We went to a third opinion and he also agreed the aneurysm had not grown, and showed us the radiology report, wherein the radiologist had not seen any growth. I heard the 3rd opinion doctor say under his breath that Dr. Sekhar had read the CTA scan himself without waiting for the radiology report, and that he had mis-measured. Of course we are thrilled! We are going to get a cerebral angiogram next Christmas to be sure, but for now we are off-the-charts happy. Thanks so much for your kind concern.
OMG Diana, That is incredible news! Isn't it a wonder how your diligent research and NOT jumping immediately into surgery has paid off! I'm very happy the doctor was wrong (for a change!!) My best to you and Kasey, and I hope you never have to go down that path again.
I also have the option of coiling or clippin (plus probably the stent and pipeline), but I never want to go through this stress or have to think about it again. I don't want a scar either, but it's well hidden &if it means you'll live & never have to worry about it again, I think it's worth it. The other thing to think of with any new surgery is that you cannot tell what the long term effects will be-how many new drugs keep getting pulled off the market because they're killing people or causing heart attacks or cardiac disease? The answer is lots, lots that we hear about and lots that we don't because they can't be discussed whilst there is a legal case going on. The surgeons these days have been doing clipping for 20 or more years, some have done over 1000 of these exact surgeries and that is all they do. To me, I would rather go with something that has a long term successs rate and that I will never have to think about again. I was told that if a coil or stent fails, the chances are very low that it is possible to then go on and clip it to fix it permanently, and that 2 of these "less invasive" surgeries are much more dangerous than 1 clipping, which while it may be more invasive, has a 100% rate of success after getting through the surgery. Also think about the fact that if something, God forbid, were to happen during surgery, at least the surgeon would have direct access to act immediately and fix the problem before it becomes too late. I was also told because of my age (42), I was too young to have to go through this all again and I would never need to if I had the clipping done. The choice is up to you and your daughter, but please remember that she has her whole life ahead of her and if she needs to take even at the worst up to a year to recuperate fully, in might be a bit inconvenient, but she will never have to worry about it again and can go on to live a full and meaningful life doing all the things she dreams of like so many people on this site do too. At least please give it the proper thought it derserves and get as many second opinions as you can, making sure you ask how many of each of the types of surgeries and/or procedures the person has done themselves.
I was 30 when I had a 5mm aneurysm on my optical nerve. I had it clipped without any problems. My doctors were great & I was scared beyond belief. Having 3 young kids this is the scariest thing I've been through. I didn't have any headaches before but have them daily now. Reading isn't so easy either, it wears on my eye. But guess that's to be expected with it being on my optic nerve. Clipping is more invasive but I didn't want the worry of it. With the clipping it gave me relief of know it was taken care of. G
Amanda Davenport,
Hi. I had an Annie on my optic nerve also on oct 31, 2013. I had it clipped and my eye is still having peoples. I can open it and track things but it’s really really slow. Plush sodium dropped too low an I ended up with seizures. But my left eye is still shut and I was wondering did yours stay shut. I’m really to have to go back to my normal.
I had stent and coil in 2005. No real problems. Had it done by Dr. Hopkins in Buffalo…a teaching hospital… He is one of the first to do it…trained in France. Then he trains …as in a young doctor did mine, but Dr. H was there. If things don’t go well I was assured they would be prepared. My follow ups show all’s still okay. I wish you and your daughter all the best… Is there someone in the neighborhood who could give you a second opinion? Have just joined this site and don’t have a lot of time to keep checking in…
i had a clipping done back in dec.i had no problem with it.i was on a breathing machine for 2 dat to better myself.no big deal........i wold do the clipping.........good luck and i will keep your daughter in my prayers
I had a clipping done 12 months ago and its the best decision I ever made. I had the choice of coiling/stent/clipping but chose the latter because of its permanency & I liked the thought of never having to worry about it again. I had a great surgeon who I had full confidence in and there were no problems at all. In fact although it’s only just been a year since my surgery, I don’t feel any different than before & I often forget that I’ve even had the surgery. Part of my choice had to do with my age, at 42 I did not want to spend the rest of my life worrying about whether a coil would fail or need replacing at some stage in the future. As far as it being major invasive surgery, I actually found that somewhat comforting, insofar as that if anything went wrong during the surgery there would be clear & easy access for my surgeon to be able to clamp vessels, etc., thereby reducing the risk of a major fatal bleed or other life threatening emergency which could happen during any of the procedures. Apart from a slight indentation on the side of my head (which can be cosmetically filled), there is no sign that I’d even had it done at all. My surgery went perfectly, my recovery quick & painless, and I have no side effects or deficits whatsoever. The clipping procedure has been around for many years so long term safety & reliability has been proven and the techniques/equipment perfected. As long as your surgeon is confident & experienced in doing many clipping procedures over the years, I would highly recommended considering this as your choice of treatment. Whatever you decide I wish you all the best for a happy, healthy future.
I'm responding to your post, I'm new to BAF so I have no idea if I'll even know if you get this or how to respond if you do! I think I did my profile wrong. Anyway, yours is the first post I feel good about deciding to do the clipping. It's honest and sounds reasonable. I know everyone's different but it's hard navigating through all of this informations. Thanks for your post. Just to let you know, I have 3 aneurysms. One off the basal artery, one a bit above that, and one on the internal carotid artery.
