Abdominal Aorta Aneurysms in Children: Single-Center Experience of Six Patients

Abdominal aortic aneurysm in a child with tuberous sclerosis

Abdominal aortic aneurysm is rare in the pediatric population and even more uncommon in association with tuberous sclerosis. We have presented a unique case of a 3-year, 8-month-old girl who was successfully treated. She was admitted because of breakthrough seizures. A painless pulsatile abdominal mass on examination prompted an abdominal ultrasound scan, which identified a large saccular abdominal aortic aneurysm. Urgent replacement of the abdominal aorta with a 12-mm woven Dacron graft was undertaken. A postoperative ultrasound evaluation confirmed the successful repair. She was growing well when examined 7 months after surgery.

Popliteal artery aneurysm in a 14-year-old boy with tuberous sclerosis complex

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is rarely associated with aneurysms. We have described a patient with a popliteal artery aneurysm that was associated with TSC and occlusion of the right posterior tibial artery. The patient underwent aneurysm resection and vein graft replacement, with an uneventful postoperative course and no recurrence at 11 months of follow-up. Patients with TSC could have aneurysms in areas that will not be recognized on abdominal imaging. Physical examination of the lower extremities should be performed owing to the possibility of a popliteal artery aneurysm, and imaging studies should be performed if an aneurysm is suspected.

Congenital Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: A Case Report and Literature Review

Congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm is a rare disease with unknown etiology, and the common symptoms are abdominal pulsatile mass and pain caused by aneurysm rupture. The disease has a high mortality rate and fewer reports of surgical treatment. Here, we present a case of an idiopathic congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm. A 4-year-old boy had an abdominal pulsatile mass, and computed tomography angiography revealed an isolated infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm. To prevent rupture of the aneurysm, we repaired the aneurysm with artificial graft transplantation. No genetic mutation of the known congenital aneurysmal diseases was found in the whole-exome sequencing of the patient and his parents. There was no graft obstruction, and the patient grew well 40 months after surgery. Open surgery is the best treatment for idiopathic congenital abdominal aortic aneurysms. Surgical details such as timing and graft selection need to be further explored.

Endovascular Repair of a Descending Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm in a Pediatric Patient with Tuberous Sclerosis: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Aortic aneurysm in children is rare, but has been described in the tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) population. While surgical repair has been utilized as the primary means of intervention, we present the first known case reporting exclusion of a descending thoracic aortic aneurysm with percutaneous covered stent implantation in a pediatric patient with TSC. A review of the literature is also included herein.

A Rare Case of Homocysteinemia Presenting With Multiple Aneurysms in an Adolescent Boy

Thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) is primarily a disorder of the elderly; the condition, however, is rare in children, for whom the misdiagnosis is not uncommon. It is one of the leading causes of death in the older age group worldwide, with a 4:1 male to female ratio. There are no real data about the incidence of aortic aneurysms in childhood. Although rare, an aortic aneurysm can be an important cause of mortality in children and adolescents. We present a case of an adolescent boy with a left coronary artery aneurysm, left axillary artery aneurysm, and TAAA type-IV caused by the metabolic disease homocysteinemia. He was referred to our facility when the complicated picture of the disease was discovered.

Low-Back Pain Revealing an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm in a 15-Year-Old Girl: A Case Report

CASE

An abdominal aortic aneurysm is rarely seen in children. We report the case of a 15-year-old girl who presented with lower back pain in a subfebrile setting with moderate biological inflammatory syndrome. Imaging assessment, including a spinal magnetic resonance imaging, had shown no evidence of spondylodiscitis or other spinal or renal pathology. Ten days later, she presented in hemorrhagic shock and was found to have a ruptured infected aneurysm of the abdominal aorta.

CONCLUSIONS

This case reminds us to include an aneurysm in the differential diagnosis of lower back pain, even in children.

Open Repair for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm in a Young Boy with Tuberous Sclerosis and Review of the Literature

BACKGROUND

Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) are very rare in pediatric patients and can rarely be associated with tuberous sclerosis (TS). Open surgery is the first-line therapy. We report our experience added by a review on current literature.

CASE REPORT

A 9-year-old boy with TS and history of 2 earlier open repairs for AAA presented to our department with a recurrent juxtarenal aortic aneurysm. We performed a polytetraflourethylene patch plasty. Postoperative course was uneventful. After 8 months, reconstruction was stable, and no recurrent aneurysm developed.

CONCLUSIONS

Recurrent aneurysms may develop after open surgery for TS-associated AAA. However, open surgery is the recommended therapy but requires special techniques and experience in pediatric patients.

Acute Renal and Hepatic Failure in an Adolescent: An Unusual Presentation of Multiple Aortic Aneurysms

Aortic dissection secondary to thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms is very uncommon in children, and this life-threatening diagnosis requires a high clinical index of suspicion. Unlike adults, in whom atherosclerosis, inflammation, and advanced age are typically contributing factors, aortic dissection in children is usually due to nonatherosclerotic causes.Aortic aneurysms can be asymptomatic when small but, when significantly enlarged, can compromise organ function and dissect, resulting in high mortality rates. It is therefore critical that children with this uncommon condition be identified early when medical or surgical management can potentially improve outcome. We describe a 15-year-old patient with multiple aortic aneurysms with dissection whose presentation includes chronic anemia, acute-on-chronic renal failure with hyperkalemia, and liver injury.

Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber syndrome associated with abdominal aortic aneurysm in childhood

Klippel-Trénaunay-Weber syndrome (KTWS), also known as angioosteohypertrophy syndrome, is a rare congenital malformation with unknown etiology characterized by the combination of capillary malformations (port-wine strain), venous varicosities, and a soft tissue or bony hypertrophy of the affected limb. It is known to be rarely associated with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in adults. We report the first published case of KTWS and a rapidly progressing symptomatic AAA undergoing open repair in a child. This underlines the importance of AAA screening and treatment rather than surveillance in patients with KTWS.

Diagnosis and treatment of congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm: a systematic review of reported cases

Background

Congenital abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is distinctly rare in infants and children and carries a high mortality rate. Our objective was to summarize the experience of the diagnosis and treatment in patients with congenital AAA.

Methods

Reported cases of congenital AAA published prior to November 8, 2014, were identified through PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and reference lists. All selected cases were evaluated for main clinical characteristics.

Results

Twenty-six cases of congenital AAA were identified in the English language literature. Congenital AAA occurred primarily in children under three years old, but it was also found in young adults and fetuses. With regards to the localization, the great majority of congenital AAA was infrarenal AAA. The majority of the AAA patients lacked specific symptoms, and a painless pulsatile abdominal mass was the most common clinical presentation. The diagnosis of AAA was based on ultrasound scanning in twenty-five cases, multi-slice spiral computed tomography angiography (MSCTA) in sixteen cases, and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) in nine cases. Histopathological analyses were available in seven cases. Seven patients received conservative management. Surgical treatment was performed in seventeen cases, and open repair with an artificial graft was the main surgical intervention. The mortality associated with congenital AAA was high (30.76%). Ruptured aneurysm and renal failure were the main causes of death.

Conclusions

Good outcomes can be achieved in children with early identification of congenital AAA and individualized surgical repair with grafts.

Repair of idiopathic ascending aortic aneurysm in a 7-year-old child

Ascending aortic aneurysm is uncommon in the paediatric population, and because of the rarity the aetiology, natural progression, and prognosis of the disease remain unknown. A 7-year-old boy with ascending thoracic aortic aneurysm (60×67 mm) underwent graft anastomosis from the sinotubular junction to the undersurface of the arch. Analytical determinations including karyotyping and genetic mapping were all normal. To our knowledge, idiopathic aneurysm of the ascending aorta in children is very rare.