Nonaneurysmal abdominal aortitis in an 82-year-old woman presenting with pyrexia and back pain: a case report

INTRODUCTION: Infective aortitis has become uncommon since the advent of antibiotic therapy. Aortitis, presenting as a localised perforation in a non-aneurysmal aorta, is extremely rare. We report the case of an 82-year-old woman who was diagnosed with localised perforation of a non-aneurysmal abdominal aorta secondary to staphylococcus aortitis. CASE PRESENTATION: An 82-year-old woman presented with a history of a sudden onset of back pain and pyrexia. A clinical examination did not reveal any significant findings attributable to her sepsis. As her clinical condition deteriorated rapidly, adequate resuscitation was commenced. Appropriate serology and radiological investigations, including a computed tomography scan, were performed. The computed tomography scan revealed a diagnosis of a non-aneurysmal infective abdominal aortitis with evidence of localised perforation. This was successfully treated under local anaesthetic with endovascular aortic repair and appropriate antibiotics. She recovered fully and was completely asymptomatic a year later. CONCLUSION: A detailed assessment is essential in the diagnosis of this condition as it can frequently be missed on initial evaluation of the affected patient. Clinical features are often nonspecific and can include fever, leucocytosis and bacteremia in the absence of a pulsatile or expansile mass. The patient may also complain of back pain, as in this case report. Thorough assessment, timely investigation and endovascular intervention prevented a potentially fatal condition in our patient.