Grant Wahl’s death may have you wondering how to prevent or recognize aortic aneurysm

Dr. Céline Gounder posted an open letter to detail the cause of death of her husband, sports writer Grant Wahl, while he covered a World Cup match in Qatar. Wahl’s Dec. 10 death was determined to be “from the rupture of a slowly growing, undetected ascending aortic aneurysm with hemopericardium,” Gounder said in her letter.

In an with “CBS Mornings,” Grounder said her husband’s death was “just one of these things that had been likely brewing for years, and for whatever reason it happened at this point in time.”

Here’s what to know about aortic aneurysms.

What is an aortic aneurysm?

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an aortic aneurysm is a balloon-like bulge in the aorta — the large artery that carries blood from the heart through the chest and torso. These can dissect if the force of blood splits the layers of the artery wall and allows blood to leak in between them. Or, in a rupture, they can burst completely, causing bleeding inside the body.

Most deaths from aortic aneurysms are from dissections and ruptures.

Ascending aortic aneurysms, like Wahl’s, are the second most common type of aortic aneurysms, according to Medical News Today. The most common are abdominal aortic aneurysms, sometimes known as “Triple A,” according to Penn State.

How to prevent aortic aneurysm

To help prevent or at least reduce the risk of developing an aortic aneurysm, the Mayo Clinic offers several suggestions.

▪ Don’t smoke or use tobacco products. That includes chewing tobacco and try to avoid secondhand smoke, too.

▪ Eat a healthy diet. Your focus ought to be on eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, poultry, fish and low-fat dairy products. Skip saturated and trans fats and limit salt.

▪ Exercise. This goes with a proper diet. Try to aim for at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity. Cardio is good. Alternate days with strength training because that also helps you burn more calories and improves metabolism. Start with a little exercise if you’re new to working out and build yourself up, perhaps in consultation with your doctor.

▪ Keep your blood pressure and cholesterol under control. For some, a proper diet and regular exercise could bring your numbers down. For others on medication, take what your doctor prescribes.

Symptoms of aortic aneurysm

According to the Mayo Clinic, “abdominal aortic aneurysms often grow slowly without noticeable symptoms, making them difficult to detect. Some aneurysms never rupture. Many start small and stay small. Others grow larger over time, sometimes quickly.”

But if you have an enlarging abdominal aortic aneurysm, you might notice:

▪ Deep, constant pain in the belly area or side of the belly.

▪ Back pain

▪ A pulse near the bellybutton.

Risk factors of aortic aneurysm

“You may be at a higher risk for an aortic aneurysm if you are a man over age 65 who has a family history of the condition or who has smoked for many years,” according to the University of Miami. If you are at high risk, your physician may recommend a screening for aortic aneurysm via a computed tomography (CT) scan that can identify the condition early, according to physicians at UM.

Cleveland Clinic says that people with high blood pressure or hypertension are also at risk.

What causes an aortic aneurysm?

Causes of an aortic aneurysm, according to the CDC and Mayo, can include:

▪ Hardening of the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis, which happens when fat and other substances build up on the lining of a blood vessel.

▪ High blood pressure and high blood cholesterol can damage and weaken the aorta’s walls.

▪ Blood vessel diseases or infection in the aorta. “Rarely, a bacterial or fungal infection might cause an abdominal aortic aneurysms,” Mayo reports.

▪ Trauma to the area, such as injuries from blunt force as may happen in a car crash.

What should you do

“If you have pain, especially if pain is sudden and severe, seek immediate medical help,” suggests the Mayo Clinic.

In an episode of the Apple podcast Fútbol with Grant Wahl, published days before his death on Dec. 6, Wahl complained he wasn’t feeling well. “It had gotten pretty bad in terms of like the tightness in my chest, tightness, pressure. Feeling pretty hairy, bad,” Wahl told co-host Chris Wittyngham in the episode, CNN reported. Wahl also said he had sought help at the clinic at the World Cup media center as he thought he may have had bronchitis.

“My body finally broke down on me. Three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work can do that to you,” Wahl wrote on Dec. 5, The Associated Press reported.

How many cases in the U.S.?

Aortic aneurysms or aortic dissections were the cause of 9,904 deaths in 2019, according to the CDC.

In 2019, about 59% of deaths due to aortic aneurysm or aortic dissection were among those born men.

A history of smoking accounts for about 75% of all abdominal aortic aneurysms.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that men who are 65 to 75 years old who have smoked should get an ultrasound screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms, even if they have no symptoms.

It is not clear what risk factors Wahl faced, and his widow, Dr. Gounder, did not say whether or not he had smoked in her recent interviews.

Familiar names who died from aneurysms

Others who have died similarly from aneurysms include “I Love Lucy” TV legend Lucille Ball, at 77; “Three’s Company” star John Ritter, who collapsed at 54 on the set of his sitcom, “8 Simple Rules;” “All in the Family” co-star and stage actress Betty Garrett at 91; “Growing Pains” star Alan Thicke at 69; and “Rent” and “Tick, Tick ... Boom!” playwright Jonathan Larson.

Background

Wahl was briefly a Miami Herald sports intern in the summer of 1996 before becoming one of the most read sports reporters in the country after he was hired by Sports Illustrated later that same year.

READ MORE: Soccer writer Grant Wahl was a fixture on the world sports stage. He got his start in Miami