Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms

Abdominal aortic aneurysms affect the abdominal aorta, the large blood vessel that carries blood through the abdomen. Aneurysms are found in 5-7 percent of people over 60 years old in the U.S., but rarely produce symptoms until they rupture.  Ruptured aneurysms cause death in 90 percent of cases[i], making these events the 13th leading cause of death in the U.S.[ii] Screening for aneurysms to prevent ruptures is particularly important for those patients with a family history of these events and elderly patients (particularly males) with a history of smoking and hypertension.