Bluescat1

Just checking in, it was 4 years to the day that I had my surgery. I am feeling good and I exercise every other day. I am not sure if I want to have an angiogram next year or not since my aneurysm was diagnosed when I was 62 and it was the only one they found. I have been watching my BP and eating right. I hope everyone has a great New Year and just to let you all know that there are some of us that are still sane in the US and I am not voting for Trump. LOL

This is great news, wishing you a full recovery.

Harry

Great news, wishing you a full recovery, take care.

Good luck Jane, stay positive, I will send up some prayers for you.

Best of luck with your recovery Jane.

Hi Janey,

I was sorry to hear your procedure became more complicated than anticipated and about the stroke. However, I am so glad your speech has returned and will pray for recovery from the vertigo. I can't say I have suffered that myself, but have known sea-sickness and if they are at all alike, it is totally miserable.

Rest up and feel better soon.

Colleen

It was vertigo that led to the finding of my aneurysm, so in my case it might have been a good thing though not very pleasant.

I am now just about 7 months post op and my Orthopedic surgeon said I don't have to see him anymore. I have full range of motion and all of my strength is just about back. Two more years until my 5 year angiogram, I seem to be OK so I am not going to sweat it. The good news is I can sleep on my injured side again without pain, which happens to be the same side that my aneurysm was on.

That is good to know Louise, I am officially done with Physical Therapy, but continue to do the exercises at home.

I am 3 + months post surgery, I have full range of motion but not much strength yet. The doctor said it will take a year. I was able to get an MRI with all of this hardware in my head.

surgery ok, must wear sling at least 8 wks.

Had my first MRI the other day of my shoulder,  I was a little anxious  with this hardware store inside my head. I have a torn rotator cuff and I am having surgery today to repair it. The recovery from brain surgery is nothing compared to this.

Normal (A2/A2): Better avoidance of errors. Normal OCD risk, normal Tardive Diskinesia risk, lower ADHD risk. Less Alcohol dependence. Higher risk of Postoperative Nausea. Lower obesity. Bupropion is effective. This DRD2 TaqIA A2/A2 version causes a normal amount of Dopamine Receptors. Learns from mistakes more easily. Men may have a higher risk of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder but lower risk of ADHD. Women have higher Persistence. Higher risk of Tardive Diskinesia when taking dopamine receptor antagonists. Lower risk of alcoholism and smoking addiction. Faster recovery from traumatic brain injury. 1.6x risk of early postoperative nausea within 6 hours of surgery. Bupropion (Wellbutrin, Budeprion, Prexaton, Elontril, Aplenzin, Zyban, Voxra) works to quit smoking. Lower obesity due to incr...

I had my DNA tested at 23 and Me, one of my genetic traits for what it is worth is I have the ability to recover quickly from traumatic brain injury.I hope everyone had a nice Easter and I wish you all well.

This is the Doctor that clipped my aneurysm, he has a ground breaking treatment for stroke victims that excede the current time frame.

http://www.capitalhealth.org/medical-services/brain-spine/Neuroscience%20Notes%20Newsletter/Neurosurgeon%20Says%20Change%20in%20Stroke%20Treatment%20Criteria%20Needed%20to%20Save%20Lives

Hi Harry,it was cancelled yesterday. The consultant is now on holiday for two weeks following Easter so I am booked in on his return. x

Don't they ring you up and let you know? Just don't get yourself all worked up again, I probably had my aneurysm for years, and I have hypertension. just keep telling yourself you are going to get it fixed and that the alternative is not an option. you and I are among the lucky ones as our aneurysms were found before they ruptured. You will be fine.

Harry

Hope all goes well and you get the best possible prognosis.

Harry:-D

Thats amazing Harry. I'm hoping to have the coiling done. How did you feel after the surgery? They told me today that I would be rough for the first three days after the surgery but then I'd be ok. if I had the clipping it would take a lot longer they said.

I'm very tired been up since 5am. I went to a to to consultation this morning x

I am glad things are coming together for you, I had clipping and was home on day 2. I had a headache but that was all. I can't believe they don't sedate you for the angiogram, they put me out. My neurosurgeon was the one that performed it on me. I guess things are a little different over here.I was not a candidate for coiling because my aneurysm was a trifurcation and it was at the junction of several arteries, that is why I required 3 clips. Enough about me I want to wish you good luck and I will say a prayer for you .

Harry

I do hope so.The neurosurgeon I saw a few weeks back said I needed to be operated on within two months. It's been almost five weeks and I haven't even had my angiogram yet!

Here, the neurosurgeon only has to be present while the radiologist performs the angiogram and coiling. You wouldn't think it would differ so much across the pond for the same procedure would you?

I also read online there is another procedure where they glue the aneurysm but that hasn't been mentioned to me just the coiling and clipping x

My neurosurgeon and his team were the ones that developed the glue procedure as well as new coils being used in Europe. I didn't realize how lucky I was to live 10 miles from a world class facility. http://www.capitalhealth.org/medical-services/brain-spine/centers-programs/stroke-cerebrovascular-center

Sorry you didn't get the option you were hoping for, but everything will work out for you and pretty soon you will be helping other people get through what you are going through. They sure do things a little differently over there, as my neurosurgeon did the catheter placement on my angiogram. Keep us posted

Harry

Just wondered it ok for me to walk my dog a few miles or should I just rest up until the surgery?

I am not a doctor, but since they are not handling your case as urgent I don't see why not. I ran on my treadmill up until the day of my surgery. Exercise helps lower BP so in my case it was probably good. Pets are a very good stress reliever so that should help. The more you get back to your normal routine the better your mental outlook will be. Do you get to choose your surgeon or is it the next available? Here is hoping you get your approval tomorrow,fingers crossed

Harry

Thank you Harry. I had bad news today when I rang the Queens Hospital. They decided that because I did not have health insurance I couldn't have my angiogram there, because something could go wrong during the procedure and they said I may need surgery immediately or they may have to put a shunt in! They told me to wait until I get my NHS referral.

The NHS board meets this Thursday to decide if I can get the funding for my surgery at this Hospital because it's out of my area, but when I rang the NHS board today, they said they were waiting for something to be mailed to them but couldn't tell me what! Then said if it's not received there will be another meeting next week.

I have no idea whats happening and that is very unsettling x

I had no idea you have private insurance, I though all of GB had NHS.I have insurance from my job, I retired from Verizon but my surgeon was not in the network so he was paid at 80% of the network negotiated fee. The hospital is in network so they were covered. I called the Doctors office in advance and told them the story. They said they would get back to me and they did 1 week later and said they would take my insurance. When all was said and done they sent me a bill for $17,000.00 and I sent them a letter saying they would accept my insurance. We wound up settling for $1200.00 the out of network deductible. My primary doctor recommended this neurosurgeon as he is one of the best in the USA. The Hospital was brand new and I was the first annie operated on.

Well it sounds like you have your share of red tape over there. Things will work out for you, just keep telling yourself the alternative is unacceptable. I know I am speaking for all on the board and we are all here to support you ,take care

Harry

The neuro surgeon doesnt do those kind of things its normal someone else. Daff explaines it very well.

The MRA is with dye the MRI isnt as far as I've worked out think I have that written down in a booklet someplace.

My neurosurgeon did my angiogram under anesthesia, he threaded a catheter through my femoral artery up through my heart and into my brain. I have his bill for $7,000.00 to prove it. He also performed a second one during my surgery while he still had my head open to see if the clips were doing their job properly before he closed me up.

Thanks Harry. Here where I live they do the CT angiograms and yet in the Queens, they do the angiogram going into the groin. As the London Hospital has all the best equipment I think that should mean it's the best way if they don't use a CT scan.

I am just so confused right now. I suppose it won't be any quicker wherever I go. Time seems to be crawling by at a snails pace.x

Scarlett,

You are getting the best test, this will help the surgeon determine the best course of treatment. Just to let you know I have 3 clips on my annie and I workout and run on the treadmill with no problem. However this will be up to your surgeon to determine what is best for your particular situation. I will say a prayer for you, you will get through this.

Harry

Hi Harry,

The angiogram I'm having is the one where they feed the catheter up into the artery in the groin. I don't know what an MRA is? Is that what you had? Was a neurosurgeon present when you had yours? x

I had the one through the artery and it was performed by the neurosurgeon. I was given propofol to sedate me and I didn't feel a thing. MRA is Magnetic resonance angiography which is a fancy MRI that totaly missed my aneurysm. It didn't show up on that test but did on the MRI, Cat scan with dye and the angiogram.

Is Scarlett's angiogram an MRA or is the one where they go through your femoral artery? My doctor told me the one through the artery is the gold standard of test, and in the USA you need a bag of gold to get it done.

Hi Harry, and thanks for posting. I am so grateful for all the information. I was hoping to have my angiogram booked for next week at the Queens, but they phoned today to say I needed a referral. I explained the neurosurgeon had decided I needed this and that the details would be in my notes.However, her secretary isn't there this afternoon and the neurosurgeon is off on holiday Monday until 14th March!! I feel so frustrated. I just wanted it done next week.

When you were diagnosed did they tell you to take things easy or say what you could or couldn't do before having the surgery? I have just been told to avoid pushing up my blood pressure x

Scarlett,

They never said anything about taking it easy, I am retired so that makes things easy and I am on 2 BP meds. I don't know if I am reading your post right or I missed something but they knocked me out when I had my angiogram. I was eating lunch in a restaurant 1 hour later. The worst pain was the IV stick. My surgeon was not very forthcoming with information, so I did research on my own on the internet. I would say go on with your life. I don't know how long I was walking around with my aneurysm. I know it was 6 months from diagnosis until surgery. My annie was 6MM and was a trifurcation which means it involved the junction of 3 arteries. Just tell yourself that you are going to get better, you have a condition not a disease and it is repairable. Tell your self that you are lucky they found it and that the alternative is unacceptable. Don't hesitate to reach out to people especially those on this board as they have all been through it. Once you get over the initial shock of diagnosis your anxiety will lessen, mine did. Take care.

Harry