Just found out today--Ascending Aortic Aneurysm has gotten larger---feeling scared!

Guest · Sep 14, 2016

Hello everyone....I had an MRI today. It's been 3 years since my last one. My aneurysm 3 years ago was measured by MRI at 4.2cm. Today my MRI revealed it has grown to 4.4 cm. For 7 years my aneurysm was stable at 4.2 cm. But in the past 3 years something caused it to grow by 2 cm. Scary thing is I don't know what I did wrong to cause it to grow. My blood pressure has been kept in check with meds, I've been exercising (mild cardio---no weight lifting), I've been cutting down on carbs and making healthier food choices and I've lost 5 pounds. I'm healthier now than I was 3 years ago, but my aneurysm got bigger. I don't understand why and my doctor probably won't know either. So here I sit with a 4.4 cm ascending aorta and I'm feeling pretty scared because my cardiologist told me the new surgery threshold is 4.5 cm. Since I don't know what caused it to grow, I don't know what to avoid to prevent any more growth. And I feel myself moving closer to surgery faster than I thought I would. I also have a BAV, but there have not been any problems with the valve. It's still doing well. It's just this one section of tissue in my aorta that is weak. So I'm afraid of the aneurysm growth and the surgery. Does 2 cm growth in 3 years seem pretty severe to you all? I don't want to rush into something like surgery, but my situation seems hard to predict and I don't want to wake up next year and have it be at 5cm. Honestly, I don't think the doctors know much about aneurysm behavior. What if they grow faster than the doctors realize? As you can see, my situation has me pretty scared. Any advice or personal stories you want to share, I'd love to hear. Thanks in advance.

Ultrarunner · Sep 15, 2016

It sounds like you did everything right. Unfortunately your growth rate is entirely normal. It's genetics, not lifestyle. Mine has grown by 0.1 cm per year for eight years and is now 4.9 cm. I haven't heard of 4.5 cm being used as a threshold for surgery. Generally it's 5.5 cm. So relax. Your dissection risk will be low for a number of years. Surgery could be many years away.

HopefulHeart · Sep 15, 2016

Thanks so much for your response. I think my surgery threshold would be lower due to my BAV, plus I am short and I've read that for some reason being short warrants earlier surgical intervention for ascending aortic aneurysm. I have yet to really discuss that in detail with my Dr. And you're right, it is definitely genetics. I now believe that. I am young and have this condition so that tells me it's most likely a genetic component in play. Best of luck to you and I hope all goes well with you when your surgery time comes.

zee112 · Sep 15, 2016

I can understand the feeling of fear you must be going through. My root grew from 4.6cm to 4.9cm in the space of two years. I didn't know I had dilation of the root, nor did I pay any attention over the years as my first surgery was performed at 8, and being that young you don't quite understand any of it and choose to ignore it. May I ask how old you are and whether you've had a previous surgery?

HopefulHeart · Sep 15, 2016

Hi zee112......I am 41 and have not had any previous surgeries.

Catie · Sep 15, 2016

HopefulHeart, yes, aortic aneurysms can come with the territory of BAV. Yes, for those of us who are petite in stature and whose valves are bicuspid, the current threshold many surgeons use is lower.

I'm 5'4" and my aneurysm was first picked up at 4.4 cm in 2008. It slowly grew 4.7 and now a portion of it is 4.9. With the body size calculations, I would have been a candidate with the 4.7 cm where it remained for several years. I'm having surgery the end of this month.

As I understand it, they recommend surgery when the chances of a dissection are greater than the risks of surgery.

I know it's not easy watching and waiting and my heart goes out to you.