Chennai Doctors Save Woman Via Wrist Surgery for Brain Bleed

When a 60-year-old woman arrived at Rela Hospital in Chennai with a sudden, crushing headache and sky-high blood pressure of 230/140 mmHg, doctors discovered a ruptured brain aneurysm that threatened her life. But instead of opening her skull, they saved her through a tiny incision in her wrist.

Emergency brain scans revealed bleeding around her brain caused by a rare wide-neck aneurysm at a critical junction where one artery splits into two. This type of aneurysm is notoriously difficult to treat because of its unusual shape and location.

The medical team, led by cerebrovascular neurosurgeon Muralidharan Vetrivel, used a Woven EndoBridge (WEB) device to block blood flow to the aneurysm. Think of it as a tiny mesh basket that fits inside the bulging blood vessel, allowing blood to clot naturally and sealing off the danger zone.

What makes this truly remarkable is how they got the device there. Instead of threading it through the femoral artery in the groin (the traditional route), they inserted it through the radial artery in her wrist. This smaller entry point meant less trauma to her body and allowed her to move around much sooner after the procedure.

The approach also eliminated the need for open brain surgery, permanent stents, or dual antiplatelet medications that come with their own risks and complications. The patient avoided all the traditional drawbacks while getting the lifesaving treatment she desperately needed.

The Bright Side

This procedure represents a huge leap forward in treating one of the most feared medical emergencies. Brain aneurysms affect about 6 million Americans, and when they rupture, roughly 40% of patients don't survive. The techniques used at Rela Hospital are making these life-threatening conditions more survivable with gentler, faster recovery.

The woman who arrived unconscious with dangerously high blood pressure has now been moved out of the ICU and is recovering well. Her medical team, including senior neurosurgeons Natesan Damodaran and Ramanan Rajagopal, demonstrated that innovation in medical procedures doesn't always mean bigger interventions but sometimes means smarter, smaller ones.

For patients facing similar diagnoses, this Chennai case offers real hope that brain aneurysms can be treated with less invasive methods and better outcomes.