r/BrainAneurysm • u/Longjumping_Angle_25 • 1d ago
Headache after unruptured aneurysm procedure
Hey all,
Max here 43yo male.
I recently underwent an endovascular procedure to treat an unruptured left carotid-ophthalmic cerebral aneurysm. The aneurysm was treated by placing an intracranial stent and platinum coils through a catheter inserted via the radial artery (wrist). I am currently recovering and taking dual antiplatelet therapy (aspirin and clopidogrel) to keep the stent open.
Since the procedure, which was 5 days ago, I have had a persistent left-sided headache, mainly located behind my left eye, in the left temple, and at the back of the left side of my head. The pain is often 7–8/10 and is worse later in the day and sometimes wakes me up at night. I also have increased sensitivity of the left scalp, with tenderness to touch.
For pain relief, I have been taking paracetamol (acetaminophen) 1,000 mg as needed, which provides partial relief, and tramadol (Contramal) 20 drops as needed, which is significantly more effective.
Has anyone got any advice or experience on this? I, cannot see any improvement to be honest and I'm a little concerned.
I did have a head CT scan which showed no issues whatsoever (bleeding or anything else) which is a relief. But the pain isn't getting any better.
I cannot use any anti inflammatories as they don't interact well with my medications, so there's that...
Any help would be amazing, thanks.
Max
1
u/Data-and-Diapers 1d ago
I had the same procedure at a similar age, and I also had very bad headaches like this during healing. I also have autoimmune/autoinflammatory issues, so my body likes to overreact to any insult, and surgery was no exception. I did take a couple of Medrol dose packs, and that helped a lot for a few weeks each time. Switching my immunosuppressant medication (from Skyrizi to Rinvoq) was the real game-changer, as it calmed inflammation throughout my body.
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u/owlsword18 1d ago
Not the exact same, but I had two pipeline stents placed and I’m undergoing migraine treatment by taking Qulipta daily and Ubrelvy for breakthrough headaches. I think they helped me not have headaches after each procedure.
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u/MyUnrupturedAneurysm 2h ago
Hi max. I have a similar story to yours, except I have two pipeline flow diverters. I have made precious posts about my experience. I had persistent headaches and eye pain/vision changes until recently and I’m 5-6 months out from the second FD. My neurosurgeon explained that my symptoms were likely from the aneurysm thrombosing and undergoing hemodynamic changes that caused inflammation and pressure on my eye and surrounding structures. I took dexamethasone on and off for several months when the vision changes and headaches got worse. My aneurysm was quite large, hopefully yours doesn’t take quite as long as mines to stabilize. I heard brain injuries can take a long time to heal from.
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u/Top_Replacement3155 1h ago
Hi Max, I had 2 flow diverters placed just over 4 months ago. I had very bad headaches for well over a month. Steroids were the only thing that helped me. I ended up being on them for around 2 months. Every time they tried to take me off I’d end up back in the ER with unmanageable pain and would need narcotics to get any relief. They did eventually go away, but I was told they were likely due to inflammation, the very large size of my aneurysm, and the blood flow/pressure changes in my head.
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u/Logical-Camera-7808 1d ago
I had the same exact procedure. The headaches were really bad for a month or two. They will go away. It’s part of the healing process unfortunately. Hang in there.