(HealthDay News) -- A cerebral aneurysm occurs when the wall of a vein or artery located in the brain becomes dilated, enlarged or bulging.
While aneurysms may strike anyone, they tend to occur more often in adults than children, and in more women than men.
Symptoms of a cerebral aneurysm may vary according to its severity. The U.S National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) says that some aneurysms are small and stagnant, and may cause very few or no symptoms. Other aneurysms are larger, continue to grow, and may cause vision problems or numbness in the face. Before an aneurysm ruptures, a patient may have sudden difficulty seeing, nausea, vomiting, headache or unconsciousness.
If the aneurysm does rupture, according to NINDS, emergency surgery is usually needed within three days to alleviate pressure building up in the brain and to repair the aneurysm to prevent additional internal bleeding. If the aneurysm is diagnosed prior to rupture, surgery and other procedures can be performed to prevent a rupture and additional complications.
Farm Worker's Kids Show High Pesticide Exposures
THURSDAY, July 20 (HealthDay News) -- Tests suggest that the children of immigrant farm workers in North Carolina have high levels of potentially harmful pesticides.
Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C., collected urine samples from 60 children, ages 1 to 6, of farm workers in six counties. The samples were analyzed for evidence of exposure to widely used organophosphate insecticides.
The levels found in the children's urine were higher than those found in other parts of the United States, the team reported in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. However, the researchers said, they didn't know if the levels were high enough to harm the children.
It is known that high levels of exposure to organophosphate pesticides can cause coma and death, and that long-term exposure at lower levels can increase the risk of birth defects, cancer, and sterility, the study authors noted.
"Efforts to reduce the exposure of these children to pesticides must be redoubled. While science grapples with the question of 'how much is too much?' measures need to be taken to minimize exposure," lead researcher Thomas Arcury, professor of family and community medicine at the university, said in a prepared statement.
In a second study, the Wake Forest researchers found that many wives of immigrant farm workers in North Carolina and in Virginia did not understand how to protect their children from pesticide exposure.
The researchers said pesticide safety training for farm workers should be expanded to include their families. This could be done through brochures or videos that can be brought home.
The second study was published in the journal Health Education & Behavior.
More information
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has more about pesticides and child safety.
