A brain aneurysm is a bulging, vulnerable area in a blood vessel in the brain. This thinning of the artery wall could eventually cause it to burst. A ruptured aneurysm can result in subarachnoid hemorrhage, a serious condition of brain bleeding. Women tend to experience aneurysms more frequently than men do. If it has not ruptured, treatment may occasionally be required. Unnoticed tiny brain aneurysms affect a large number of people daily.

Types

• Berry or Saccular Aneurysm
  This common type of aneurysm resembles berries that are suspended from a vine. Saccular aneurysm represents 90% of cerebral aneurysms.
• Fusiform Aneurysm
  This type causes the artery to bulge from all sides.
• Mycotic Aneurysm
  Infection is the main cause of this kind of aneurysm. The arterial wall may weaken if an infection affects the brain’s arteries.

Causes
Although the exact causes of brain aneurysms are unknown, the chances rise with age. It is seen in women over the age of 40. The biggest risk factor for developing the condition is high blood pressure. However, several additional aspects of past health conditions and certain lifestyle habits also raise the chances.

• A strong family history of brain aneurysms (more than one member of the immediate family affected)
• Previously diagnosed with a brain aneurysm
• Kidney polycystic disease
• Marfan syndrome or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome are examples of collagen vascular diseases that can increase the risk of aneurysm
• Gender being female
• Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD)
• Arteriovenous malformations (AVM)
• Profound emotions (extremely irritated or angry)
• The use of blood thinners

Symptoms
A ruptured aneurysm’s primary symptom is an abrupt, intense headache. People frequently claim that this is the worst pain in the head they have ever had. A ruptured aneurysm can cause other symptoms in addition to a severe headache, such as:

• Nausea and diarrhea
• Rigid neck
• Double or blurry vision
• Responsiveness to light
• Seizure
• A lowered eyelid
• Consciousness loss
• Confusion or difficulty with awareness
• Abrupt double or obscured vision
• Issues with eye movement
• Persistent headache

Symptoms of an unruptured aneurysm are:

• Pain above the eyelid or behind the eye on one side
• A dilated pupil
• Change in eye power or double vision
• Numbness on one side of the face

Treatment
If you have a ruptured brain aneurysm, you need to get treatment right away because it will probably bleed again. To treat an aneurysm, the blood flow must be stopped.

• Surgical clipping
  To access the aneurysm, a piece of the skull is removed. The blood flow is stopped by attaching a metal clip to the neck of the aneurysm.
• Endovascular coiling
  This treatment method avoids opening the skull during surgery. The neurosurgeon inserts a catheter through the leg or groin to the location of the bulging. Tiny platinum coils are passed through the tube into the aneurysm, preventing the blood from entering.
• Flow diverter surgery
  This procedure is used for chronic brain aneurysms where coiling or clipping falls ineffective. During this surgery, the doctor places a stent inside the artery, often comprised of metal mesh. It forms a wall inside the vessel to keep blood from leaking through the aneurysm.