Spontaneous dissection of the celiac artery in the young: a case report and systematic review of the literature

Introduction: The spontaneous isolated celiac artery dissection (siCAD) represents a challenging cause of abdominal pain and complete information regarding incidence, etiology and risk factors in the young is still lacking. In this study, we report a case of siCAD occurred in a young woman and we systematically searched for information on siCADs in literature databases.

Methods: PubMed/Embase and Cochrane were searched for, using the following terms: Isolated celiac trunk dissection, isolated celiac artery dissection, celiac artery dissection, celiac trunk dissection, spontaneous isolated visceral artery dissection, spontaneous isolated dissection of visceral arteries, isolated celiac artery dissection in the young, isolated celiac trunk dissection in the young. Patients were included if they were younger than 50 years, if they had a spontaneous etiology and a selective involvement of the celiac artery (with or without involvement of its branches).

Results: 180 studies were found, and 18 remained after screening. Twenty-one patients (male = 19, female = 2) with siCADs were included. Mean age was 44.71 ± 3.61 years. Hypertension was the most prevalent comorbidity. All patients presented with abdominal pain, more often located in the epigastrium (n = 11). Almost all patients underwent CT to confirm the diagnosis. A conservative treatment was adopted in 13 patients while an invasive approach was adopted in 8 patients (endovascular approach in 7).

Discussion: siCADs represent a rare but important cause of vascular dissection in the young. Uncomplicated cases can be safely treated with conservative strategies. The surgical or endovascular repair is indicated when dissections complicate or symptoms persist despite an adequate conservative treatment.