ACUTE GASTROINTESTINAL HEMORRHAGE DUE TO AN RUPTURED ANEURYSM OF THE GASTROEPIPLOIC ARTERY

Visceral aneurysms are very rare (0,1 % in autopsy-statistics). In our own review of literature we have found only 9 described cases of an a neurysm of the gastroepiploic artery. In the presented case an aneurys m was found when the patient developed an acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Due to the high risk of rupture (20 % of all visceral aneur ysms), which can be either intraperitoneally, intraluminally or into t he satellite vein, the treatment should be surgically on finding.