A brain aneurysm is frightening. Even if you don’t know what it is, you have heard the term before. An aneurysm happens when an artery carrying blood to the brain begins to weaken. Once weak enough, the vessel can buckle under the weight of its load, which results in a rupture. As the artery starts to bleed, the uncontrollable flood of blood can lead to a range of side-effects, such as a stroke or permanent brain damage.
Thankfully, an early diagnosis is an effective way to spot and treat a brain aneurysm and reduces the chances of a hemorrhaging artery.
How Is an Embolization Implanted?
Of course, the most invasive part of the current methods used today is inserting a coil or stent into the blood vessel to divert the blood flow. As a result, the vessels that are weak and that present the biggest challenges for the patient won’t be overloaded. Therefore, a brain aneurysm will be less likely to occur, and there is no need for a skull incision.
Microsurgical clipping, a process where a clip is positioned on the aneurysm, is an alternative procedure. Still, both require small openings to access the brain and place the device in position. While keyhole surgeries have made things less traumatic for sufferers, it still has consequences on the body.
What Has Changed?
Microsurgeries continue to be essential for placing stents and coils in the affected area in the brain. But, for those who have already had the surgery, their ability to monitor blood flow could be much more accessible and involve fewer invasive treatments.
This is because researchers have created a technique that monitors blood levels via an implant. The belief is that it will affect patients on multiple levels; first, there shouldn’t be any reason for lengthy consultations and additional invasive surgeries with less need for follow-up testing.
Secondly, the monitoring device will offer control to the patient. Rather than attending a doctor’s surgery or a hospital for a check-up, it’s expected the person will be able to analyze and divert blood flow without having to visit the hospital.
How Is It Possible?
The implant, made from platinum, can be used as an antenna. With the help of microfabrication tools and microsurgical clipping, this allows the implant to detect blood levels wirelessly. It can also highlight when the hardware itself might fail, giving surgeons extra time to react to situations that might otherwise occur out of the blue.
By working together, micromanufacturing techniques and modern medicine are ensuring a much healthier standard of care that tackles incredibly impactful health problems, such as brain aneurysms. Neurosurgeons continue to improve their techniques, and save lives. The manufacturing industry gives them the tools to make this happen, which how treatments can progress and give people the lives they deserve.