Symptoms of a Brain Aneurysm

Most brain aneurysms cause no symptoms and may only be discovered during tests for another, usually unrelated, condition. In other cases, an unruptured aneurysm will cause problems by pressing on areas within the brain. When this happens, the person may suffer from severe headaches, blurred vision, changes in speech, and neck pain, depending on the areas of the brain that are affected and the severity of the aneurysm.

Ruptured Cerebral Aneurysm Symptoms

• Sudden, severe headache (sometimes described as a “thunderclap” headache or “the worst headache of my life”)
• Neck pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Pain above and behind the eye
• Dilated pupils
• Sensitivity to light
• Blurred or double vision
• Drooping eyelid
• Fainting or loss of consciousness
• Seizures
• Loss of sensation

Unruptured Cerebral Aneurysm Symptoms

Most aneurysms are asymptomatic, particularly ones that are small.  Occasionally, large aneurysms may cause the following symptoms related to pressure on the adjacent brain or nerves:

• Peripheral vision deficits
• Thinking or processing problems
• Speech complications
• Perceptual problems
• Sudden changes in behavior
• Loss of balance and coordination
• Decreased concentration
• Short-term memory difficulty
• Fatigue

Because the symptoms of brain aneurysms can also be associated with other medical conditions, diagnostic neuroradiology is regularly used to identify both ruptured and unruptured brain aneurysms.

If you have any of the above symptoms or notice them in someone you know, see a health professional immediately.