An Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm, Intramural Thrombus and Moderate Leak in an Asian Man Presenting with Acute Gastroenteritis

INTRODUCTION: Missing a leaking abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is common in medical practice because few at-risk patients have a history of AAA and many have an unusual presentation. BACKGROUND: AAA is less common among Asians than white Caucasians of the same age. Our patient had no significant risk factors apart from age and sex and had an unusual presentation. PATIENT AND METHODS: A 67-year-old Asian man presented to the emergency room (ER) with a 1-day history of nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, fever and abdominal pain. He was febrile, dehydrated. and had marked tenderness at the right iliac fossa. Laboratory findings suggested bacterial gastroenteritis but this did not explain the localized tenderness at the right iliac fossa. RESULT AND DISCUSSION: A CT scan of the abdomen revealed an AAA arising above the origins of the renal arteries, an intramural thrombus, a retroperitoneal haematoma and a leak extending to the right iliac fossa. The patient was transferred to another hospital and underwent exploratory laparotomy, surgical repair of the aneurysm, and aortobi-iliac grafting with removal of the thrombus. The patient was discharged in good shape 3 weeks after surgery. Without the CT scan of the abdomen, the AAA could have been missed and the patient treated for severe gastroenteritis. LEARNING POINTS: Although abdominal aortic aneurysm leak is a rare differential diagnosis for elderly Asian patients with abdominal pain, it should be still suspected and investigated accordingly. In our elderly patient, as localized tenderness on clinical examination could not be explained by the gastroenteritis, an imaging study was essential to rule out a surgical cause.