Inflammatory abdominal aortic aneurysm

Between January 1976 and December 1982, 181 patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms were treated surgically, and in 13 patients the aneurysms were found to be inflammatory. Inflammatory aneurysms of the abdominal aorta (IAAA) share important characteristics with typical atherosclerotic abdominal aortic aneurysms. Diagnosis and surgical management of IAAA are distinctive which suggests that IAAA should be considered separately, as a varient of typical abdominal aortic aneurysms. IAAA occur predominantly in males. The presenting symptoms are often idiosyncratic and include severe abdominal or back pain, or both, and ureteral obstruction; the diagnosis of IAAA should be considered when these symptoms are present. Although grossly and microscopically, the perianeurysmal fibrosis resembles idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis, the two conditions can be differentiated. At the present time, ultrasonography and computed tomography appear to offer reliable means for diagnosing IAAA. The presence of IAAA, whether established preoperatively or discovered unexpectedly at operation, necessitate certain modifications in the surgical approach, in order to avoid injuring the duodenum and the venous structures. Most patients can be successfully treated by resection and graft replacement. Rupture of the aneurysm in IAAA appears to be less frequent than in typical atherosclerotic abdominal aortic aneurysm.     

Comparative analysis of retroperitoneal and transperitoneal aortic replacement for aneurysm

Transabdominal aortic replacement is the most widely accepted surgical approach in the treatment of infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) with an enviable mortality rate of 2 to 5 per cent. This approach, however, is attended by significant intraoperative loss of fluid and subsequent translocation as well as impaired postoperative pulmonary function and ileus. Although the retroperitoneal exposure of the aorta was used for the first repair of an AAA by Dubost and has been championed more recently by others, it has not been widely accepted. Experience suggests, however, that the exposure is as good and that postoperative morbidity is significantly less than that with the transperitoneal approach. In the past five years, we have surgically treated 299 AAA, 106 by the transabdominal route and 193 by the extended retroperitoneal approach. In 133 of the 193 patients upon whom the retroperitoneal approach was used, the aneurysm was left intact after division of the infrarenal aorta for an end to end proximal anastomosis of an aortoaortic to iliac to femoral bypass. There has been a significant reduction in the intraoperative replacement of fluid and blood, in postoperative respiratory support, in length of time in the intensive care unit and in occurrence of postoperative ileus when compared with the transabdominal endoaneurysmorrhaphy approach. Furthermore, the exposure, particularly upon the obese patient, is superior. Findings from this experience using the retroperitoneal approach for repair of AAA indicate that it results in less over-all physiologic disturbance of the patient.     

Total laparoscopic repair for abdominal aortic aneurysm

Surgical resection and grafting have long been the standard treatment for abdominal aortic aneurysm and provide an excellent long-term outcome. However, there is tremendous impact on patients due to the surgical invasiveness. Endovascular aortic repair using stent graft was introduced in 1991. After refinement of the techniques and technology, endovascular aortic repair was approved by most health authorities and is associated with less periprocedural morbidities. In between these two extremes, some surgeons endeavored to create an alternative and perform less invasive surgeries. Hand-assisted laparoscopic aortic surgery and laparoscopic-assisted aortic surgery were introduced in 1996. In 2001, total laparoscopic abdominal aortic aneurysm resection with tube graft interposition was first performed in Canada. Till now, only a few vascular units in North America and Europe perform these delicate techniques. We report our first case of total laparoscopic abdominal aortic aneurysm repair. Laparoscopic aortic surgery provides better visualization of the aneurysm neck, less bowel manipulation and avoidance of hypothermia. The minimal invasiveness could translate to better perioperative outcome. To our knowledge, this is also the first case report in Asia. The detailed techniques are described.     

Total descending thoracic and abdominal aorta grafting in type III aortic dissection with aneurysm.

Single-stage complete replacement of the descending thoracic aorta and the abdominal aorta is a surgical challenge. A 65-year-old man developed acute DeBakey type IIIB aortic dissection and was treated medically. The affected aorta dilated progressively, reaching a maximal diameter of 7 cm 2 years later. Computed tomography revealed a Crawford type II thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm and an additional infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm below the dissected aorta. The descending thoracic aorta and the abdominal aorta were completely replaced with a Hemashield graft under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. The postoperative course was complicated with transient left hemiparesis and upper gastrointestinal bleeding which were successfully treated by transarterial embolization. The results of this case indicate that complete replacement of the descending thoracic and abdominal aorta can adequately and safely treat type III aortic dissection.     

Hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery for abdominal aortic aneurysm.

There is a trend toward the use of minimally invasive surgery and limited incision for the surgical repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). Conventional AAA repair is performed with a large laparotomy wound and uses either a transperitoneal or retroperitoneal approach. Due to the older age of this patient population, they often suffer more from the surgical wound, require prolonged hospital stay and have a slower recovery. We describe the use of hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery for grafting of a 5.5-cm infrarenal AAA identified by computed tomography scan. The operator inserted the left hand with a Pneumo Sleeve device in the abdomen through a 7-cm midline supraumbilical incision for laparoscopic surgery. Using the left hand and laparoscopic instruments to do the surgery provided control over the operation and sensation of touch. At the completion of the laparoscopic dissection, the first Clawford clamp was applied above the aortic bifurcation through the laparoscopic incision. The second Clawford clamp was applied below the renal arteries through the midline laparotomy incision. After cross-clamping the AAA, the aneurysm was incised, the clot removed, and lumbar bleeding points were oversewn with 3-O prolene suture. Then, the aneurysmal segment was grafted with a Dacron prosthesis using conventional suturing technique. The patient was extubated 3 hours after the operation, stayed in the intensive care unit for 1 night and was discharged 7 days later. He resumed oral intake on the postoperative day 1. There were no complications. This case illustrates that hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery for AAA can allow quick recovery of bowel function, quick progression to regular diet, short length of hospital stay, and probably a reduction in the total cost of care.     

Pregnancy after removal of abdominal aortic aneurysm.

A case of pregnancy complicated by an abdominal aortic aneurysm was treated by abdominal hysterotomy and resection of the aneurysm. The patient had a subsequent pregnancy without complication. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of pregnancy following abdominal aortic aneurysmectomy.     

Congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm with porencephaly: a case report

An abdominal aortic aneurysm is a rare disease in the paediatric population and is mainly caused by intrauterine infection, connective tissue diseases, such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and Marfan's syndrome, and iatrogenic trauma due to umbilical artery catheterization. Although several cases have been reported in the English literature, they were rarely diagnosed prenatally. Vascular obstruction in utero is also believed to be the major cause of porencephaly. Recently, gene mutations have been reported as the cause of both the above-mentioned diseases. We present a prenatally diagnosed case of congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm with porencephaly.     

Initial experience with the AneuRx Stent Graft for the treatment of infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm.

ABSTRACT: We report our initial experience with the modular AneuRx Stent Graft System for the treatment of infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in National Taiwan University Hospital. From July 2002 to October 2003, 5 patients were recruited for stent graft repair. Patients were all male, and aged from 62 to 82 years. The stent grafts were deployed via the opened femoral arteries under fluoroscopic guidance. Endograft deployment was successful in all 5 patients. The average procedure time was 139 +/- 23 min, and mean blood loss was 310 +/- 167 mL. All patients had a smooth postoperative course. Type II endoleak was noted in 3 patients initially, which sealed spontaneously in 2 of them. One patient developed graft limb thrombosis 1 month after operation, which was treated by femoral-femoral bypass. Treatment was successful in all patients with no mortality during 1-year postoperative follow-up.     

Factors affecting survival of patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm in a West Virginia community

The hospital records for patients treated for ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms in southern West Virginia during a recent five year period were reviewed. The over-all mortality rate was 62 per cent. Patients with intraperitoneal rupture had a higher mortality rate (97 per cent) than patients with retroperitoneal rupture (25 per cent). Patients at increased risk were more than 80 years of age, presented with syncope, experienced a short duration of symptoms before seeking medical attention, had preoperative systolic blood pressure levels of less than 90 millimeters of mercury and had a preoperative hemoglobin level of less than 8. Other factors associated with death were a delay in beginning surgical treatment, a larger total blood loss and amount of blood transfused. The results of multivariate analysis demonstrated that preoperative blood pressure, preoperative hemoglobin, presence of syncope and the amount of blood loss were, in large part, reflections of the type of rupture and had only slight independent relationship to mortality. The most effective method of preventing fatal outcome is elective resection of the aneurysms before rupture occurs.     

Two year prospective analysis of the Oxford experience with surgical treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysm

During the two years from 1 November 1985 to 31 October 1987, 177 patients were admitted to a hospital in Oxford with the diagnosis of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The aneurysm had ruptured in 88 patients, of whom 75 underwent emergent surgical treatment, yielding an operative mortality rate of 36 per cent. Of the 13 patients who did not have surgical treatment, two died before transfer to the operating room; in the other 11 patients, a deliberate decision was made not to undertake surgical treatment--in ten patients, the reason was an age of 85 years or more and in one patient, severe debilitating Parkinson's disease. Emergent operations were done upon another 15 patients--11 who had acute aneurysm and four in whom symptoms were not caused by an aneurysm. Emergent operations for ruptured or acute aneurysms represented 55 per cent of all operations for AAA. This high proportion and large number of emergent operations is in marked contrast with the experience of comparable specialist vascular surgical units in the United States. The 24-fold difference in mortality rates between surgical procedures performed electively and for ruptured aneurysm suggests that a considerable impact on over-all mortality could be achieved by a substantial increase in referral of patients     

The risk of ligation of the left renal vein in resection of the abdominal aortic aneurysm

The left renal vein can be ligated during aortic operation to attain better access to the perirenal aorta. This maneuver has been considered safe, with a low incidence of postoperative renal complications. This study was done to evaluate the risk of left renal vein ligation and its influence on renal function in patients with elective resection of abdominal aortic aneurysms. The records of 332 patients undergoing elective repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms during a five year period were reviewed. The clinical and operative data of patients who had left renal vein ligation and those who did not were similar. Left renal vein ligation was not associated with an increased mortality rate but was strongly associated with an increase in serum creatinine level and a clinical diagnosis of postoperative azotemia. Nine of 13 patients who had left renal vein ligation had postoperative azotemia compared with 21 of 319 patients without left renal vein ligation (p less than 0.001). The mean change of preoperative and postoperative creatinine value was an increase of 1.92 milligrams per deciliter in patients with left renal vein ligation in contrast with 0.26 milligram per deciliter in patients without ligation (p less than 0.00075). Thus, ligation of the left renal vein increases the risk of postoperative renal complications and its use should be selective.     

Abdominal aortic aneurysm and the pseudorupture syndrome

A consistently high mortality for ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm has given rise to an aggressive approach in the management of these patients. However, there is a group of patients who present with signs and symptoms suggesting a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm but instead have other life threatening conditions. These patients and their management are presented herein.