A rare cause of spontaneous intra-abdominal haemorrhage due to coeliac artery stenosis

Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 2010 Oct 18. doi: 10.1308/147870810X12822015504888. Online ahead of print.

Abstract

Coeliac artery stenosis is associated with the formation of collateral vessels from the superior mesenteric artery. High pressure within collateral vessels can lead to the formation of visceral artery aneurysms. Haemorrhage from such aneurysms can be catastrophic if they are not identified and managed promptly. We describe successful arterial embolisation of a pseudoaneurysm arising from a branch of the gastroduodenal artery secondary to coeliac artery stenosis. To the best of our knowledge this is thefirst such reported case in the literature.