Int J Intern Emerg Med | Volume 1, Issue 1 | Case Report | Open Access

Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm as a Cause of Trauma

Layne Dylla^1*, Jason Zeller¹, Michael Lu² and Ryan P Bodkin¹

¹Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, USA
²Department of Emergency Medical Services Academy, University of New Mexico, USA

^*Correspondance to: Layne Dylla 

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Abstract

Abdominal Artic Aneurysms (AAA) have high rates of mortality when ruptured, with few patients making it to the hospital and even less surviving to discharge despite aggressive measures. While often not in the differential diagnosis among trauma patients, here we present the case of an elderly farmer who presents as a level 1 trauma alert after being found minimally responsive lying next to an overturned tractor. He was intubated in the field for airway protection and initially seen at an outside hospital where he was found to be hypotensive requiring initiation of vasopressors prior to transfer to the regional trauma center for further evaluation. During the trauma evaluation, the patient had a positive Focused Assessment with Sonography in Trauma (FAST) exam, was stabilized temporarily in order to obtain a Computed Tomography (CT)-abdomen/pelvis that demonstrated a large Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) with primarily retroperitoneal rupture. This case underscores the need to have a broad differential diagnosis even in trauma activations that includes potential medical catastrophes as an initial cause of traumatic injury. Additionally, the case is a unique presentation in which a large retroperitoneal bleed was detected on FAST exam due to a small amount of intraperitoneal extension.

Keywords:

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA); Trauma; FAST

Citation:

Dylla L, Zeller J, Lu M, Bodkin RP. Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm as a Cause of Trauma. Int J Intern Emerg Med. 2018;1(1):1003.