Aortic Aneurysm

Diagnosis

Echocardiography sound wave

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In some cases, aortic aneurysms are diagnosed from a chest X-ray or chest CT scan during evaluation for another condition, such as lung disease.

Abdominal aortic aneurysms may be noticed by a physician who feels a pulsating bulge in the abdomen during a physical exam.

Abdominal aortic aneurysms may be further evaluated by ultrasound or CT scanning. Thoracic aortic aneurysms are typically evaluated by echocardiography, CT scanning or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Occasionally, a test called an aortogram is required.

Computerized Tomography (CT) Scan

In this procedure, the patient is on a movable table that's guided into a machine that looks like an enormous doughnut. There, X-ray scanners create detailed images of the organs and blood vessels in the chest and abdomen. The test may be administered using injected dyes that show the flow of blood. Specialized CT scanning can create detailed three-dimensional pictures of the aorta.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Scan

A cylinder-shaped machine scans the body using magnetic fields, creating a computer image of soft tissues in the body, including the shape of the aorta. It offers high-resolution contrast imaging of the arteries and blood flow, and can provide a three-dimensional view of the aorta.

Chest X-rays

Chest X-rays show widened aortas in 90 percent of people with symptoms. An aneurysm that has calcified — a sign of atherosclerosis — will usually show up on an X-ray.

Echocardiography

Echocardiography is a sound wave picture that can be done at the patient's bedside. The echocardiogram may be performed transthoracically (the device transducer on the chest) or transesophageally (the patient has swallowed a device transducer) so the images can be viewed from the inside out. These sound wave pictures can give detailed information about heart function as well as the diameter of the great vessels.

Abdominal Ultrasonography

An ultrasound similar to an echocardiogram uses sound waves to create a detailed image of the aorta and its branches.

Dissecting aneurysms

Aortic dissections are typically diagnosed by CT scanning in the emergency room when patients come in with sudden, severe chest pain.

Dissecting aneurysms are diagnosed from their symptoms. When examined, about two thirds of people with aortic dissection have diminished or no pulses in their arms and legs. A dissection that is moving backward toward the heart may cause a murmur that can be heard through a stethoscope. Blood may accumulate in the chest. Blood leaking from a dissection around the heart may prevent the heart from beating properly and cause cardiac tamponade — a life-threatening condition.