agis v. howard jawnson co.
an aneurysm being treated by coil embolization
an aneurysm is a weakening of a arterial wall in the brain. the blood pressure in the weakened portion of the artery causes a pocket of blood to form off the side of the artery’s main channel. burst aneurysms have a 25% chance of fatality, and a 50% chance of severe brain damage
in preparation for a coil embolization, doctors superheat a coiled platinum wire. the surgeon allows the wire to cool and then feeds it through a catheter that he has threaded up into the brain. the superheating process causes the platinum to remember its shape and as it exits the catheter, it coils back into the exact shape the doctor manipulated it into earlier, filling up the aneurysm and allowing the healing process to begin
from natgeo
