RUPTURED AORTIC PSEUDOANEURYSM 28 YEARS AFTER GUNSHOT WOUND - CASE-REPORT AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Penetrating injuries to the abdominal aorta most often result in rapid exsanguination and death, Immediate surgical intervention mag result in control of hemorrhage and survival of the patient, Rarely, hemorrha ge after aortic injury may be contained by surrounding tissues, result ing in pseudoaneurysm formation, Traumatic pseudoaneurysms may rupture at any time, and this is usually a fatal event, A 47-year-old man rec ently presented with a supraceliac abdominal aortic pseudoaneurysm tha t ruptured into the right chest 28 years after a gunshot wound to the back, This report describes the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatm ent of traumatic pseudoaneurysms of the abdominal aorta and includes a review of the literature, This is a casein,which a traumatic pseudoan eurysm of the abdominal aorta was successfully repaired by surgery aft er rupture into the thorax and is the first such case to be reported i n the literature.