[Health Tip] Cold Weather, Beware of 'Time Bomb in the Brain' Cerebral Aneurysm

Although the year-end cold wave has slightly eased, cold weather below freezing continues in the mornings and evenings. In such weather, special attention must be paid to vascular health. When the temperature difference between indoors and outdoors widens during the cold winter, blood vessels can suddenly constrict and then expand, which may cause them to rupture due to the inability to withstand the blood pressure. This is especially critical when cerebral arteries rupture, as it can be life-threatening and requires great caution.

Cerebral aneurysm is a condition where part of a cerebral artery weakens and develops a defect, causing that area to bulge like a berry. The exact cause is unclear, and most cases are acquired rather than congenital. It tends to occur more frequently in middle-aged and older adults as blood vessels weaken.

The prevalence of cerebral aneurysms is about 2-4% of the general population, but the incidence has been increasing recently in Korea due to rapid aging. According to data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service on the 3rd, the number of patients visiting hospitals for cerebral aneurysms increased by 68% from 98,116 in 2018 to 165,194 in 2022 over four years.

The reason why cerebral aneurysms must be prevented in advance is that rupture can be fatal. They are often called "time bombs in the brain" because they frequently rupture suddenly without any warning signs. The mortality rate from ruptured cerebral aneurysms ranges from 25% up to 50%. Among patients, 15% die before reaching the hospital. The problem is that there are no clear symptoms before rupture. If a cerebral aneurysm grows beyond a certain size, it may gradually cause symptoms such as nerve paralysis, headaches, sensory loss, muscle weakness, or facial paralysis by pressing on surrounding tissues, but such cases are not common.

However, once a cerebral aneurysm ruptures, a completely different pattern of pain appears. Patients experience an extremely severe headache unlike anything they have felt before, along with nausea, vomiting, seizures, convulsions, sudden loss of consciousness, and cardiac arrest symptoms. Rarely, mild headache symptoms similar to a cold may persist for several days.

Seo Dae-cheol, Clinical Director of the Department of Neurointerventional Medicine at Gangnam Bedro Hospital, said, “The prognosis of cerebral aneurysm depends on the severity of brain damage caused by rupture and bleeding, so if suspicious symptoms appear, one should go directly to the emergency room as quickly as possible,” and warned, “Waiting for natural recovery or trying unverified medications or folk remedies is absolutely prohibited.”

Seodaecheol, Clinical Chief of Neurointerventional Medicine at Gangnam Bedro Hospital
[Photo by Gangnam Bedro Hospital]

When visiting a hospital, brain computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is first used to diagnose the condition of cerebral blood vessels. If there is evidence of subarachnoid hemorrhage, which is bleeding within the tissue surrounding the brain, a three-dimensional cerebral angiographic CT (CTA) is used to check for cerebral aneurysm rupture. Afterward, surgical and treatment plans are made.

In the past, surgery was almost the only treatment method, but recently, treatments such as coil embolization, which approach cerebral blood vessels through the femoral artery in the groin or wrist vessels without opening the skull, have become common. However, if coil embolization is difficult or brain hematoma removal is necessary, craniotomy is performed to directly observe the cerebral aneurysm and clip the aneurysm neck with a clip ligation surgery.

The most representative treatment for cerebral aneurysms is coil embolization. A thin catheter is inserted into the cerebral blood vessels through cerebral angiography equipment, and a platinum coil is placed to block the cerebral aneurysm. Recently, simple and effective devices such as flow-diverting stents or WEB (Woven EndoBridge) have also been introduced. The procedure causes no wounds or pain and requires a short hospital stay. However, due to the high difficulty of the surgery, it is best to have it safely performed by experienced specialists in a specialized hospital equipped with state-of-the-art equipment.

Cerebral aneurysms can be detected early through regular brain examinations. If there are risk factors such as hypertension, age, alcohol consumption, smoking, or family history, it is advisable to undergo general MRI or magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). Seo Dae-cheol, Clinical Director of the Department of Neurointerventional Medicine at Gangnam Bedro Hospital, said, “If cerebral aneurysms can be detected, most can be prevented before rupture,” and added, “Especially if you frequently experience dizziness and headaches and have hypertension, it is recommended to undergo cerebral vascular examinations.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.