Aneurysm Treatment
A brain aneurysm, also called a cerebral or intracranial aneurysm, is life-threatening, especially if it ruptures (bleeds). Successfully treating a brain aneurysm - either unruptured or ruptured - requires precision and skill that comes from performing hundreds of surgeries. The National Brain Aneurysm Center was created as a result of our medical team's focus and commitment to improving the way aneurysms are treated.
Collectively, the physicians at the National Brain Aneurysm Center have treated more than 2,700 aneurysms since 1997. Eric Nussbaum, MD, chair of the National Brain Aneurysm Center, has surgically treated more than 1,225 aneurysms, placing him among the most active neurovascular surgeons in the country. In 2007, Dr. Nussbaum, along with Mike Madison, MD, evaluated 500 aneurysms and treated 350.
Unruptured aneurysms
Even though the risk of an unruptured aneurysm bleeding is relatively small, the consequences can be debilitating. More patients with unruptured aneurysms are choosing to seek out the best care - not just the closest care. A growing number of patients and referring physicians from all over the country are selecting the National Brain Aneurysm Center for cutting-edge surgical and endovascular treatment of unruptured aneurysms.
We do more surgeries on unruptured aneurysms than nearly any other hospital in the nation - and we do them better. Dr. Nussbaum has surgically treated more than 775 unruptured aneurysms. Yet, his complication rates in surgically clipping unruptured aneurysms are among the lowest in the country at 1.6 percent, compared to average complication rates exceeding 10 percent (source - New England Journal of Medicine International Study of Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms).
Dr. Nussbaum's mortality rate for patients treated for an unruptured aneurysm is less than 0.3 percent. More than 96 percent of his patients have returned to their previous lifestyle or occupation without modification at six months post-surgery.
Dr. Madison and his interventional neuroradiology partners have collective experience in coiling over 600 unruptured aneurysms. Our interventionalists also have very low procedural complication rates of less than 3 percent and mortality rates of less than 0.5 percent. Mortality rates at hospitals treating fewer than 30 aneurysms per year typically approach 5 percent.
Ruptured aneurysms
Since the majority of people are unaware that they even have an aneurysm until it ruptures (bleeds), immediate access to care is vital. Patients should be taken to the nearest hospital to ensure timely, critical care. At the National Brain Aneurysm Center, our team has established critical care procedures to not only stop the bleeding and potential permanent damage to the brain, but to reduce the risk of recurrence and optimize the chance for a full recovery. With one of the few neurointensive care units (neuro-ICUs) in the country, our physicians and nurses are dedicated to the goal of saving the brain, giving you the best chance at resuming your life.
Dr. Nussbaum has surgically treated more than 450 ruptured aneurysms. Approximately three-quarters of the ruptured aneurysms treated at the National Brain Aneurysm Center or transferred to the Center are treated with endovascular surgery by Dr. Madison and his partners.
Our tertiary/quaternary referral center provides highly specialized medical care to patients who may have been referred for advanced treatment several times beyond primary care. In many cases, these patients are extremely ill and are not expected to survive a severe rupture. We work diligently to give patients every possible opportunity to survive and recover.
For severe ruptures, our interventional neuroradiologists have very low complication rates of four percent and mortality rates of 0.75 percent. Our results stand in comparison to national benchmarks suggesting procedural morbidity rates as high as 5 to 15 percent and procedural mortality rates as high as 5 to10 percent for ruptured aneurysm patients.
