Blunt disruption of the abdominal aorta: Report of a case and review of the literature

Abstract

A 71-year-old woman had an abdominal aortic disruption as a belted passenger in a motor vehicle accident. The diagnosis was unexpected, and the patient died during surgery. There have been 54 patients operated with this diagnosis since 1953; our patient was the fifty-fifth. This is an unusual injury, because the aorta is well protected in this position. Thoracic aortic injuries are much more common (20 times) than abdominal injuries. The causes are motor vehicle accidents, blows to the abdomen, explosions, and falls. Obstructing lesions such as thrombosis and intimal dissection are the more common presentation. False aneurysms occur occasionally. Free rupture has a very high and immediate mortality rate, and few patients arrive at the hospital alive. Diagnosis can be clinical, based on distal ischemia and neurologic abnormalities, or made with Doppler scanning, ultrasonography, computed tomography, or arteriography. Two thirds present acutely and one third subsequently months or even years after the original injury. Treatment consists of flap suture, thrombectomy, bypass grafting in more extensive injury, or extraanatomic bypass in the face of severe contamination. Recently, endoluminal stenting has successfully been used, avoiding an abdominal operation completely. (J Vasc Surg 1997;25:931-5)