Alzheimer's Disease is a disease that affects the brain and nervous
system. It can cause the nerve cells in the brain to die. This disease
gets worse over time, it’s also known as a type of dementia. There is
no cause of the disease, some doctors think it could be caused due to
age, family history genes, or Immune system problems. This disease
can be classified as early-onset which means from early ages forties
to sixties or late-onset. Signs that some patients may show would be
Memory loss, especially short-term memory loss. Difficulty doing
normal daily tasks, difficulty speaking, Confusion about time and
place, Misplacing things, mood changes, or behavior.
Seeing a Neurologist will ask questions regarding overall health, past
medical history, and family history. They will do a mini-mental at the
neurologist's office, which is a test asking some questions or saying
words, and go back to it about five minutes later asking the patient at
that time do they remember the words that were just asked earlier in
the appointment. The provider will ask the family if they notice any
changes in behavior or personality. The doctor may order blood and
urine tests to find possible causes of the problem. CT, MRI of the
Brain, or position emission tomography is also known as Pet scan all
can be used to rule out other causes of the problem.
Concept and Etiology
c A cerebral aneurysm can be described as a weak blood vessel in
the brain, that then balloons and fills with blood. This vessel can then
leak or rupture, which could cause life threating bleeding. There are
no symptoms if the vessel does not rupture. So, finding this condition
early is crucial for a patient's health. In regards to the week one
discussion of health, a cerebral aneurysm may not have immediate
impact on health if it does not rupture. However, if it does rupture it
greatly affects the patients’ health and they could be in immediate
danger of bleeding out
Classification
c c A cerebral aneurysm is classified by the type and the size. The
size's being small (less than 11 millimetres diameter), large (11-25
millimetres) and giant (> 25 millimetres). Also, the types include,
saccular, fusiform, and mycotic. Saccular aneurysm is the most
common and is when the blood is in a rounded sac connected to the
main artery or one of its branches. Fusiform is when the aneurysm
balloons on all sides of the artery. Lastly mycotic is when an infection
affects arteries in the brain, thus weakening the artery wall and
causes an aneurysm to form.
Clinical Manifestations
Symptoms: There are no clear symptoms unless the aneurysm is very
large or ruptures.
c Pain above and behind the eye, double vision, nausea, stiff neck,
sensitivity to light, vomiting, numbness, weakness
Signs: c dilated pupils, paralysis on one side of face, loss of
consciousness, seizure, cardiac arrest
Diagnostic Tests
c c CT Scan - Computed tomography
c MRI - Magnetic resonance imaging
c Cerebral angiography - finds blockage in arteries in brain or neck.
Can also identify weak spots in an artery.
Resources
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Cerebral
aneurysms fact sheet. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and
Stroke. Retrieved November 22, 2021, from
https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-
Education/Fact-Sheets/Cerebral-Aneurysms-Fact-Sheet#3.
https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx
