Cerebral Aneurysm

Aneurysm is a term used for bulge in any of the blood vessel due to weakening of the walls of that vessel. When this happens in a blood vessel of the brain, it is termed as Brain Aneurysm. The danger with aneursym is that it can rupture anytime causing massive bleed in the brain. This condition is called haemorrhagic stroke and leads to paralysis or weakness on one side of the body. Immediate treatment is to be provided in such cases to prevent death or permanent paralysis.

The symptoms of brain aneurysm are similar to many other conditions and can be quite easily missed. Symptoms like headache, pain behind one eye, dilated pupil, double vision, numbness on one side of the face are experienced by the patients having unruptured aneurysm. For ruptured aneurysm, the patient may experience the worst headache of life, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, sensitivity to light, seizure, weakness on one side of the body, drooping eyelid, loss of consciousness etc.

Treatment Options

Most of the cases of brain aneurysm are diagnosed only when the aneurysm ruptures. Unruptured aneurysm is a chance diagnosis when imaging of the brain is done for any other problem. MR Angiography or CT Angiography give excellent information about any aneurysm in the brain blood vessels.

For unruptured brain aneurysm there are two treatment options :

Aneurysm Clipping - In this procedure, the neurosurgeon opens a window in the skull and reaches the site of aneurysm. A clip is used to plug the bulge in the blood vessel. The risk associated with any kind of neurosurgery are all present in the coiling surgery. Aneurysms which are easy to access are better treated by this option.

Aneurysm Coiling - Aneurysms which are difficult to access through craniotomy are better treated by endovascular coiling. In this surgery a thin catheter is inserted through the femoral artery on the leg and the surgeon pushes the catheter to the site of aneurysm in the brain. Coils are then used to strengthen the walls of the blood vessel at the site of the aneurysm. This prevents haemorrhagic bleed in the aneurysm.

Best Doctors and Cost

Dr Singh is one of the best trained and highly qualified neurosurgeon for doing Brain Tumour Surgery at Jiva Hospital. The cost of treating an unruptured brain aneurysm in India would be in the range of Rs. 2 - 15 Lacs depending upon the type of surgery planned. In some cases where a flow diverter is used the cost of the surgery could go upto Rs. 15 Lacs. Most of the clipping surgeries can be done in the range of Rs. 2 - 2.5 Lacs while the coiling surgeries can be done in the range of Rs. 2 - 5 Lacs. Only in surgeries where a flow diverter is used, the cost of the surgery would be this high.

Jiva Hospital has the latest microscopes and highly advanced surgical instruments to perform brain and spine surgeries with high level of precision. The hospital stay is 5-7 days and 5he patient is called to the hospital for removal of stitches 15 days after the surgery. If you have an individual health insurance policy then this surgery is covered after a period of 2 years from the date of inception of the policy. However if you are a beneficiary of company given policy then the surgery is covered from day one. Always go through the terms of your health insurance policy like room rent capping and co-payment to avoid any kind of financial shocks later on.