I'm 49 years old and was diagnosed with a small aneurysm in April 2012. It is a 4.5 x3.0 saccular aneurysm projecting anteromedially from the left supraclinoid internal carotid artery. I went through much anxiety for the first couple months after diagnosis. Had my 6 month checkup in October. No change. Recommendation is to wait and watch, but is my choice of course. Great UCLA doctors. Risks of death or severe disability procedure (2% coiling) (5% clipping) outweigh the risks of rupture (o.5%), so for now, I am waiting and watching and just going by the odds. I like everyone else, am trying to make the right decision so I can be here for my 10 yr old daughter for a long time!
Doctors said no restrictions except don't binge drink, don't get high blood pressure and don't smoke. I try to do most of the same things I did before, except anything where my head would be upside down and all the blood rushing to it, such as Yoga or certain exercises. I still go on rollercoasters, fly on airplanes, work out as much as I can, etc. I try not to think about having the aneurysm, sometimes do really good and don't think much about having it, but sometimes fail miserably. This week I have been failing miserably with the news of Bruno Mars mother (55) dying unexpectedly from a rupture.
MissMercury, please reconsider the roller coasters. A gentle, slight yoga inversion is permissible, according to my neurosurgeon, but there is a reason they tell people with heart or blood pressure conditions they can't ride. If the excitement and fun don't cause you a dangerous rise, the weird Gs you pull in many different directions will put pressure on your head. Seemingly healthy young people have died mysteriously after rides and had annies discovered at autopsy.
Maybe I'm just having a serving of sour grapes because I love roller coasters and can't go on them since my 5mm ICA ophthalmic base annie was found over a year ago. I'm just watching mine, too, especially since fixing it would be a big risk to vision.
Thank you for your insight. I did ask my neurosurgeon at UCLA if I could go on roller coasters (as I had just got a Disneyland annual pass), and he said it was ok. as an FYI, i do not have high blood pressure. but now, I think I'll be to scared to go on them again!
I guess mine is in the same spot as yours? my report says "opthalmic segment of the left supraclinoid Internal Carotid Artery" Is that about where yours is?
It sounds like we are in the same boat, both found over a year ago and waiting. Thank you so much for responding, it's good to talk about with someone who knows what you are going through! Good luck, when is your next checkup?
My annie is not only in the ophthalmic segment, but my ophthalmic artery comes out of the front wall of it. I hope yours is a stand-alone one.
I do have high blood pressure, but it is well-controlled with medication. I take yoga once a week, and I specifically asked my surgeon about doing downward dog, and she said it should be OK. I did overdo one night when no other students showed up, and ended up with tiny broken blood vessels on my face, so I am being much more cautious about what I do there.
My next checkup will be early in 2014, and I'm hoping for an MRA, rather than a CTA. I've had two full-blown angiograms, and I don't really want to have more radiation every year. The second one was at my second opinion at Johns Hopkins, and they wanted to be absolutely sure of it size and the ophthalmic artery involvement.
I am in a similar situation as you. I will be 49 in four days and have a 4mm x 3mm x 5mm aneurysm on the R ICA. I was diagnosed a little over a year ago (May 2012). I, like you, had a lot of anxiety the first couple of months. I was afraid to do anything strenuous, exercise, etc. As time has gone on, I , like you, have been able to forget about having it most of the time. Yes, there are some times I too fail miserably. It is hard when I have looked at this site and found others in this group that are living with an aneurysm and they were diagnosed two or three years ago. I look at their posts and find that several of them have stopped abruptly. I wonder what happened to them? Did they have a problem or did they just move on? It is distressing. I think we should have an "I'm still here! day" where everyone in this group posts a little celebratory note that they are still here. Maybe it could be January 1st of each year. I think that would be a positive boost for those just coming to the site right after their diagnosis who are scared to death like we were(and still are at times). What do you think?
Well looks like 49 is a popular age for aneurysms! I’m a49 year old mom who also just found out about an aneurysm. Miss Mercury, my daughter is 11 so i know just how you feel. My aneurysm is 5mm behind my left eye. The neurosurgeon I saw didn’t suggest watch an wait because of a couple of possible risk factors. They think stent and coils would be good. I’m taking my time to decide though…worried ill create trouble meddling with it. It is hard weighing the risks…watching it seems to be less risky at the moment, but it is very scary and hard for me to not obsess over. Funny that we did Disneyland 2 weeks before the aneurysm was found. Glad I did all that crazy fun then! It is so hard to know what’s best to do. I wondered the same as you GR about the people who stop posting…hopefully they have resumed"normal life" and don’t really rely on the forum anymore.
Karen
I'm still here GR! Are you? Sorry for the late reply GR, I see you posted on my birthday and I haven't been to this site lately.. Some of the posts give me more anxiety I've found. Especially the ones that say, get it fixed now... don't wait. You know, I'm sure you've heard the same. Update: did my latest MRI. this marks my 1 and 1/2 years since diagnosis. No change in size - YAY! Same information from UCLA docs. I can do whichever, fix or watch, but since it hasn't grown, I'm good to still watch and wait, since the risk of popping is still lower than that of the surgery. If it grows at all, I'll be urged to get the coiling. Have you had an MRI lately?
Karene - good luck with whichever you decide! Please keep us updated..
Can I ask both of you what let to your diagnosis? They say mine was accidental find cuz i got a brain mri one day cuz I found myself slurring some words... that may have been in my head though because no one else noticed me doing it..
Hi Miss Mercury,
Yes I am still here! I will get re-scanned in early October. So glad to hear your aneurysm hasn’t grown! Mine was discovered because when I bend over or turn my head quickly I hear my pulse in my Right ear. They did MRA thinking maybe I had an AVM but found the aneurysm instead. They say the sound is not related to the aneurysm but I know doctor’s don’t know everything! (I’m one myself. Ha ha) I’m absolutely convinced what I hear in my ear is related to the aneurysm.
Hi again, mine was found incidentally when I went to the ER because of a short bout (about a minute) of double vision. Having previously had a stroke (not from an aneurysm) I knew I couldn’t ignore the strange symptom. So far the 3 docs I’ve seen all agree that the double vision wasn’t related to aneurysm.
Your stories are comforting. I, too, am watching and waiting...was diagnosed in Aug 2013 and will have a follow-up MRI/MRA in February to see if the aneurysm changes...it's on the right ICA and is 4 x 3.5 x 4. Despite than i'm a researcher and have read all the studies carefully, there seems to be no perfect answer and i'm just trying to feel my way through the decision...that is, until there is a change to the aneurysm. Wishing you all peace and serenity in your journey!
Hi DrDonna.. How are you doing? Wish you peace and serenity in your journey too! Please let me know what you find out if you do more research! I'm still good. I'm 18 months in!
Thanks for reaching out, I'm doing fine. I've combed the research and consulted with a team of physicians at Hopkins and there's no definitive answers about treatment recommendations. I was told that the three characteristics i.e., size, shape and location, are critical factors in whether they recommend treatment or not. Two of those factors for me are relatively positive, but the shape of my annie is irregular which can suggest an increased weakening in the wall and thus, a higher risk of hemorrhage. That said, I've opted to wait and watch, and will have an MRA in February to assess whether there have been any changes which would prompt them to strongly recommend treatment. We shall see!!
Sorry for the late response. I don't come on the site very often. I'm doing well. I had my repeat MRA in October. No change in the aneurysm on the ICA. I might have the start of a small one on the left PCA (2mm), or it may be artifact. They will check everything again this next October. How are you?