DEAR Dr. Fritz,
rHi, doc. Please call me Macbeth. I am writing you because I am really quite anxious lately. My sister had just been diagnosed with aneurysm. The truth is, this sounds so foreign to me. But, I have heard this is quite deadly, especially if this would rupture. So, doc, what is an aneurysm? How do I know if I have one? What should we look up to for signs that this has already ruptured? Are there factors or diseases which would make one a most probable target? Are there treatments?
Thanks and I hope you can enlighten me on this matter. God bless you and your column.
Macbeth of Generalao
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Dear Macbeth of Generalao,
I understand your anxiety. Aneurysm is not a joke. It is like a bomb ticking inside your body that could explode anytime. But, when? That’s a question that doesn’t have any answer yet. It is like a bomb – but, there’s no definite time when it would explode. Maybe sooner or maybe later. Or maybe in between those time frames. What is really something to be anxious here, is you just don’t know when. Well, I believe we are all caged in the same limbo. We don’t know when we are going to die. And one thing is for sure, no one comes out alive here. The best thing that we can do is just to be prepared anytime because we just don’t know when the angel of death would come knocking at our doors. So, whether we have aneurysm or not, death is not that a million years away. But, of course, having aneurysm will make the angel of death appear much nearer than those who don’t have it. And I concede, that’s really creepy.
Alright, let us deal squarely with aneurysm now. An aneurysm is a weak spot in one of your brain’s arteries. These are the blood vessels that carry oxygen from your heart to the rest of your body. Aneurysm usually happens in the areas where arteries fork. What happens is, over time, when the flowing blood puts pressure on that weak area, it gives way and balloons out. So, imagine a balloon that you blew. Look at the surfaces. They have thinned, right? The thinned out areas over time would keep on weakening and eventually, they will burst.
Oh, oh, I would have wanted to start now for the in-depth discussion, but, since we are running of space for now, so, let me then continue this in my next issue. Until then!
Dr. Fritz
(Dr. Fritz Legarde Espedilla is an aesthetic dermatologist and surgeon and a clinical sexologist. She is also trained in hypnotherapy and Medical Acupuncture. She has been in the broadcast media for more than a decade and has written a book based on her 15-year stint with her radio program, “Healthy is Sexy Secrets ni Dr. Fritz.” She is also a faculty in a College of Pharmacy. For your questions, you may send them to Dear Dr. Fritz, c/o Sunstar-Davao Publishing Inc., Ebro-Pelayo Building, Jacinto St., Davao City, (former Department of Foreign Affairs office), across Ateneo de Davao University and beside Holy Child School of Davao, or you e-mail them to dokfritz@yahoo.com. If you don’t wish your letter to be published, we regret that we cannot answer them. Thank you for your understanding.)