Experts reveal if a break up can really cause a brain aneurysm...after Kim Kardashian's startling diagnosis

Kim Kardashian stunned fans this week after revealing she was diagnosed with a brain aneurysm, and suggesting that her divorce from Kanye 'Ye' West might have caused it.

In a promotional clip for season seven of The Kardashians, the 45-year-old said doctors had discovered a 'little aneurysm' in her brain, a small bulge in a blood vessel in the organ that can, in rare cases, rupture and cause a life-threatening bleed.

Kardashian said doctors blamed 'stress' for her aneurysm and in another clip, the entrepreneur was shown getting out of the MRI machine as she spoke about her stressful divorce from ex-husband West, 48, with whom she shares her four kids.

Kardashian was married to West from 2014 until 2022, and the pair have four children together: North, 12, Saint, 9, Chicago, 7, and Psalm, 6.

But their relationship, and subsequent divorce, was tumultuous.

Describing the relationship in an interview this month on the Call Her Daddy podcast, the Skims founder said there was a 'lack of stability,' adding that, in her view, with West she never knew 'what you're going to get when you wake up.'

However, Daily Mail spoke to three doctors, all of whom said it was unlikely stress directly caused Kardashian's aneurysm. Rather, it may have increased risk factors for the condition.

They noted the most common causes of the complication in people under 50 are genetics, such as whether a parent had the condition, alcohol use, smoking cigarettes and high blood pressure, though it's unclear whether Kardashian has any of these risk factors.

Dr W Chris Winter, a neurologist in Virginia who has not examined Kardashian or seen her as a patient, told the Daily Mail that 'stress from a divorce cannot cause a brain aneurysm'.

He added: 'If one had an aneurysm, stress potentially leading to elevated blood pressure could increase its chance of rupture.

'An aneurysm develops out of a structural flaw in a blood vessel wall. Chronic hypertension is a risk factor for development, but I don't think stress itself would cause an aneurysm by itself.'

Dr Tommy Wood, a neuroscientist at the University of Washington in Seattle, told the Daily Mail, however, that stress could play a role - though he added he was not able to comment on Kardashian's case specifically as he is not her doctor.

He said: 'There is a possibility that stress could contribute to terrible aneurysms, although, traditionally, people would say stress is not a recognized risk factor for an aneurysm.

'There is this thinking that chronic stress would increase the risk for an aneurysm, most likely due to the high blood pressure it causes.

'So, every time you are stressed, your blood pressure goes up, and if that stress continues for a long time, it can cause chronic high blood pressure, and we know that that is a risk factor for an aneurysm.'

He added: 'Chronically stressed people are more likely to smoke, more likely to drink, and those also cause high blood pressure, so it could also be through that pathway.'

Dr Tonie Reincke, a vein care specialist in Texas, told the Daily Mail when she first heard Kardashian's statements about her diagnosis, she felt it was a stretch.

'I am not sure that would cause an aneurysm itself, but it could certainly cause high blood pressure that might exacerbate one,' she said.

'But it is true that you can have an aneurysm, a weakening of the blood vessels, and live a totally normal life. This might be a completely incidental finding.'

Doctors say that going through a divorce raises the risk of depression, anxiety, stress and social isolation, but studies have not linked it to a higher risk for a brain aneurysm.

Studies do suggest that people who are divorced are more likely to suffer from health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer and mobility limitations, which may be linked to increased psychological stress, which can lead to a weakened immune system and poor lifestyle habits.

About 7million people in the US, or one in 50, have a brain aneurysm, according to the Brain Aneurysm Foundation, with most aneurysms being small or about one-eighth of an inch in size, equivalent to the size of a line drawn by a standard pencil.

Brain aneurysms are most common in people ages 35 to 60 years, and tend to develop after the age of 40. Women are more likely to have them than men, which researchers have previously linked to hormones and differences in blood vessel structure and inflammation.

Typically, and if unruptured, aneurysms usually do not cause any symptoms, though, in some cases, they may press on tissues or nerves in the brain and cause pain above or behind one eye, numbness on one side of the face and, potentially, seizures.

Millions of cases are estimated to be undiagnosed in the US, with the complication often only detected if someone undergoes scans for a separate condition.

If an aneurysm ruptures, it can cause a severe headache, described as the worst headache someone has ever experienced.

About 30,000 brain aneurysms rupture every year, which is a medical emergency, as it causes life-threatening brain bleeds. In about 50 percent of cases, the ruptures are fatal, with about 15 percent of patients dying before reaching the hospital.

It is not clear whether brain aneurysms are becoming more common, but more people are being diagnosed with high blood pressure at a younger age, with this being a key risk factor for the complication.

The CDC says that in the year 2013 to 2014, about 7.3 percent of people under 40 years old had high blood pressure. For comparison, between 2021 to 2023, the figure rose to 23.4 percent, or a threefold rise in a decade.

The Mayo Clinic says online that people with an unruptured brain aneurysm should talk to their doctor about treatment.

This may involve simply monitoring the aneurysm or, if there are concerns over a rupture, having surgery to seal the ruptured blood vessel.