User:Mr. Ibrahem/Cerebral aneurysm

A cerebral aneurysm, also known as a brain aneurysm, is when there is a localized ballooning of a blood vessel located around the brain. In most cases no symptoms are present. Occasionally there may be numbness, pain, or an inability to move one side of the face. Complications can include a subarachnoid bleed, which presents with a sudden onset of a severe headache.

Risk factors include high blood pressure, smoking, alcohol misuse, cocaine, head trauma, infectious endocarditis, and family history. A number of genetic conditions, such as autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, are associated with a high risk. Types include saccular, fusiform, and infectious. Diagnosis is generally by medical imaging.

Treatment depends on the size, location, and overall health of the person. Generally treatment is recommended when the aneurysm is more than 7 mm in size. What to do with small aneurysms is unclear and these may be simple monitored for growth. This can be done by endovascular coiling or surgical clipping.

About 3% of people are affected. Rates are similar in males and females. They occur most commonly in those 30 to 60 years old. They are the cause of about 0.5% of all deaths. Following rupture the risk of death at three months is 50%. A ruptured cerebral aneurysm was first described in 1765.