What is an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm?

Abdominal aortic aneurysms are a condition that occur mainly in the more elderly population and is where there is a dilatation on the main blood vessel in the abdomen that occurs just below the renal arteries. The reason that it is important to be aware of this condition which is much more frequent in men is that if this blood vessel bursts it is associated with a very high mortality. Patients with asymptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm may present with pain in the abdomen. They may also present with having a loss of blood to the legs and complaining of pain in the legs. They can also present being very unwell with the loss of blood pressure because the aneurysm itself has burst. In the United Kingdom and in other countries there is also a surveillance programme for men when they hit the age of 65. All men are offered via their GP the opportunity to partake in the National Aneurysm Screening Programme. If somebody is asymptomatic and their aneurysm is identified as being greater than 5.5 centimetres this is an indication for intervention. Once somebody is noted to have a small aneurysm they will actually be followed up by the National Screening Programme and when the aneurysm makes it this threshold they will be referred on to a vascular specialist who will then arrange various tests including a CT scan to assess in detail the size and shape of the aneurysm.