Coping with AORTIC ANEURYSM

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a swelling in the artery from the heart to the abdomen

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Most aneurysms don't cause problems but can be serious because there's a risk of rupture (dissection).

Aortic dissection occurs when there is a partial tear in the wall of the aorta, causing a life-threatening internal haemorrhage. This time-critical medical emergency can be fatal but, if diagnosed and treated urgently, has a better than 80% survival rate.

The cause of aortic aneurysm isn't always clear. Risk factors include hypertension, atherosclerosis, smoking, cocaine use, weightlifting, pregnancy, blunt chest trauma, certain genetic and connective tissue disorders, and autoimmune and inflammatory conditions.

Relatives of those who've had aortic dissection should be screened to ensure that they're not at risk. Abdominal aortic aneurysm often has no symptoms – you usually only find out during an abdominal aortic aneurysm screening test, or tests for other conditions. However, if an aneurysm gets bigger, you might experience abdominal or back pain, or an abdominal pulsing feeling.

Ask your GP if you have pain that doesn't go away or keeps coming back, if you feel a lump in your abdomen or have repeated fainting attacks. These symptoms can be caused by lots of things and do not mean you have an abdominal aortic aneurysm, but aneurysm needs to be ruled out, usually by an ultrasound scan.