Unruptured Right PICA Aneurysm
 

Hello Everyone,
I am new to online communities but scared and need to reach out to learn about other people's experiences.

Just this week I found out that I have a unruptured Right PICA Aneurysm that is 6.44 mm in size. Other than very minor blurred vision on an occassional basis, I do not have any problems.

George Washington Hospital Center has suggested that I have the aneurysm and PICA coiled in the very near future. This is due to the fact that I am a 42 yr old female with slightly high blood pressure that is controled with meds, but other than that, I am in very good health. Based on my research, while it is still brain surgery, it has very good results.

My biggest concern with my surgery is that they need to also coil the PICA. In doing so they hope that other arteries will pickup the slack and supply oxygen, etc to my lower brain. The possibility of stroke is my concern and it scares me to death.

I don't know all of the medical jargoon yet so I apologize if my comments are not clear.

I will be following up with another doctor at Washington Hospital this week.

If anyone has any experiences with Coiling a PICA aneurysm I would love to hear about your experience and thoughts.

Thanks so much.

Hi Waterfront,

:welcome_sign: To Neurotalk. While I do not have a personal experience with aneurysms I know that someone will come along soon that can help you. I see you also posted in the aneurysms forum. The members here are great and very knowledgeable.

I understand your fear and have been there myself. Fear can paralyze and I sometimes have to remind myself that fear is toxic. It's stressful and makes the situation worse. So take a deep breath and try to let that fear go for today and relax. I wish you peace and joy today and hope the outcome will be better than you think.

Sending :hug: :hug:

Hi,
I have two annies. One was a brain aneursym clipped in March and I'm getting a second opinion on the second. I was told it was in a spot too risky to do surgery on. I can tell you that if left untreated and it ruptured it would be a bad thing. Please look at a link I found on PICAs:
http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclo.../aneurysm.html
Good luck to you. The wait between diagnosis and surgery makes you crazy! :eek: Please ask your surgeon about the risks and benefits. Get specifiics! I recommend making a list. Take some one else with you if possible. My mind started to go blank under the stress. Get a second opinion if your unsure. Good luck. Do a follow up posting to say how things are going.
Sarah

Hi there

I had an 8mm annie (unruptured) coiled in the right PICA just over 2 and a half years ago and I am doing fine, the occassional blurred vision that I had pre op continued for a while afterwards but it eventually went.

The waiting to have the op part is scary and I do understand how you feel because I have been through it. Reminding yourself that this procedure is being carried out in planned controlled circumstances and your neurosurgeon will be doing his best for you helps put things in perspective when your mind starts racing.

I was 49 when this annie was coiled and I too had high blood pressure which was (and still is!!) controlled by medication. I was told that I had a 5% risk of a stroke during the procedure, but of course that means a 95% chance of not having a stroke

If you want any info on the procedure from a patients perspective dont hesitate to ask me


Pam from england

Surgery Scheduled
 

Thanks so much for your thoughts and support. The support from friends, acquaintances and family has been overwhelming. I am one that believes things happen for a reason. Not sure right now about this situation but I am sure time will tell.

I was able to follow-up with a couple of doctors this week and get my questions answered. I was surprised they saw me so quickly. While the neurosurgeon is optimistic, there are always the unknowns. I have come to the conclusion that leaving the aneurysm alone to maybe one day rupture is not an option. I am very comfortable with the neurosurgeon and the Washington Hospital Center.

I have taken this week to spend some time speaking with the doctors and spending quality time with my family. :) My nerves have calmed down alot and I am finding peace with my decision. It's in God's and the neurosurgeon's hands now.

I have scheduled the surgery for Monday morning, June 18th. Since the PICA will also be coiled along with the aneurysm, my hospital stay will be for about 4 days due to potential stroking. Strokes run on both sides of my family. :(

I really do appreciate your feedback and positive comments. And am grateful that you are here to share your experiences and thoughts. You are now added to my prayers.

Good luck on your surgery. When I had my clipping it wasn't horrible- not fun either. They doped me up afterward and I remember going on camel rides (:rolleyes: ????). I felt sore and swollen. All I did was sleep, sleep, sleep. Thought I'd have a terrible headache. I didn't. Hope your recovery goes smoothly. Just think about leaving that hospital with annies all treated!
Sarah

good luck
 

Just a quick note to wish you good luck, I will be with you in thought. Please let us all know when you can how things went.

your friend in England


pam

Surgery rescheduled
 

Just a note to let you know that my surgery has been rescheduled for a week and a half from now. You're in my prayers and I will let everyone know how the surgery goes.

Good luck with the surgery. Spend some time getting things set up for after surgery. If you live alone make arrangements to have friends help you out. It will be weeks before you can drive. You'll be laying around a lot. Books to read, movies, etc will help. Recommend you have pencil and paper to make notes. Between the surgery and pain medication your brain is pretty foggy. I spent half the day sleeping for the first few weeks. Don't forget to post after the surgery. The wait before surgery can drive you crazy. Hang in there.
Sarah

Hi, My son has had three brain surgeries. All with a high risk of stroke. He came through with flying colors. Do some research on the surgeon, it will make you feel better. Good Luck, Rashelle

Doing Extremely Well!
 

A couple of weeks ago I had the right Pica aneurysm coiled and a stent put in the pica artery. Quoting the doctor, "the surgery went amazing well"! I did think about Sarah and her camel dreams when they told me to think about something pleasant before they knocked me out. I don't recall dreaming about anything.

There was a 20% chance of being able to use the stent and I was blessed that the neurosurgeon was able to place the stent in the artery and not have to block the artery completely.

The surgery was performed by going up my right and left artery starting in my groin. They did not need to go through my cranium. The doctors indicated that they would not be able to reach the aneurysm via the cranium.

I slept alot, had bad headaches for the first week which have for the most part gone away now. I now get the headaches and neck muscle stiffness when I have done too much.

I am looking at starting to work from home part time next week.

The doctors had given me two web sites which have clips that helped us understand the procedure better. www.neuroformstent.com, www.matrixcoils.com; and www.valormedical.com.

I appreciate everyones thoughts and prayers and am going great.

Sarah, I wonder if the Intervential Radiology Department at Washington Hospital Center would be able to access your aneurysm safer via the arteries to coil it instead of going through the cranium. It would be worth a consult.

Glad things went smoothly for you. I heard the drugs after a crainiotomy are much more entertaining, but the healing after coiling is faster. I guess getting coiled and stented is preferable. I might join that club myself. I got a second opinion from a surgeon at Stanford, he's also a professor and service chief of neurosurgery there. He said my untreated carotid annie should be coiled and stented. Rest up and get well. Glad to hear from you.
Sarah

Sarah, I am so glad you were able to get an opinion to do something with the annie instead of leaving it alone. The coiling is starting to become routine these days but the stenting of brain arteries isn't. The surgeon told me that the stent could stay open and everything will be fine;, or the stent could collapse gradually and hopefully other arteries in my brain would pick up the extra blood and oxygen flow to my brain, if not then my speech, coordination, right side of my face and left side of my body could be affected; or the stent could collapse at once and I would have a stroke or strokes. I have a follow-up appointment in a few weeks and in 6 months they will do an angiogram to check the coiling and stent.
Take care and my prayers are with you and the decision ahead of you.

Sarah, It is wonderful to have you back with us and I am so pleased everything went well for you. Good luck with restarting work, I found the hardest bit was learning to pace myself, because if I didnt I got the headaches/neck pain like you describe.

Yes my doctors told me they could not have reached my PICA annie through a crainiotomy, that is why coiling of the annie was the only option for me too, we are lucky that there is this technology.

Take care,


pam from England:)

Going to get my third opinion on that untreated annie of mine on the 25th. Hope to find a NS I can talk with to understand my best course of action. Wish me luck.
Sarah