The syndrome of abdominal aortic aneurysm rupturing into the gastrointestinal tract: Summary of the literature and case report

With the new case, which is reported in this paper, forty-one examples of rupture of an aneurysm of the abdominal aorta into some portion of the gastrointestinal tract are known to be available in the literature. In 71 per cent, rupture was into the third portion of the duodenum. The condition has been six times more frequent in men than in women. While the ages were widely distributed, the occurrence of eight cases between 27 and 32 years-of-age indicates the importance of this condition in relatively young patients. The resulting syndrome combines the features of abdominal aneurysm with those of profuse hemorrhage into the gastrointestinal tract. Hematemesis, often with abundant hemorrhage from the rectum, usually marks the onset of the terminal phase.