Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm – The Importance Of Point-Of-Care Ultrasound In Rapid Diagnosis.

Abstract

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a progressive dilation of the abdominal aortic diameter to 3.0 cm or more, remains an important public health consideration due to its high prevalence, especially among elderly patients. While often asymptomatic, AAA can silently progress into  a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (rAAA), a life-threatening medical emergency associated with sudden hemodynamic collapse and high fatality rates. Despite the overall awareness of the problem, rAAA, due to its clinical presentation often being deceptive, is still susceptible to misdiagnosis, leading to life-threatening consequences. The aim of this article is to summarise information on the condition and the possibilities of improving the results of imaging diagnostics using Point-of-Care ultrasound.

A literature review was conducted using the PubMed database to identify relevant scientific papers, selected using keywords such as „abdominal aortic aneurysm”, „ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm”, „point-of-care-ultrasound”, „computed tomography”. The most significant findings were compiled in this review.

A short span of survival among patients admitted to hospitals with rAAA imposes a need of swift differential diagnosis. Point-of-care ultrasound examination (PoCUS) of the abdominal aorta, available even to physicians with limited technical experience emerges as a crucial tool, offering quick bedside assessment of suspected AAA with high diagnostic accuracy and potential to expedite life-saving interventions.