In short
Discovering you have an aortic aneurysm can feel frightening, but understanding how it's found and monitored is an important first step. This knowledge helps you work with your healthcare team to protect your health and prevent serious complications.
Key points
- Most aortic aneurysms cause no symptoms—they're often discovered accidentally during tests for other conditions
- Ultrasound is the primary, painless screening tool for detecting aortic aneurysms
- Men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked should get screened even without symptoms
- Having a parent or sibling with an aortic aneurysm makes you 12 times more likely to develop one
- CT and MRI scans provide detailed three-dimensional images when more information is needed
- Regular monitoring through imaging tests is crucial once an aneurysm is found
- Up to 81 percent of people with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms die, making early detection critical
- Aneurysms are measured in size categories that help guide treatment decisions
Introduction: Who Should Undergo Diagnostics
An aortic aneurysm is a bulge or ballooning in the wall of the aorta, the largest blood vessel in your body that carries blood from your heart to the rest of your body. This condition often develops silently, without any warning signs, which makes knowing when to seek diagnostics especially important.
You should consider diagnostic testing if you fall into certain high-risk groups. Men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked cigarettes should have a one-time screening using ultrasound, even if they feel perfectly healthy. This recommendation exists because smoking accounts for about 75 percent of all abdominal aortic aneurysms, and catching them early can be lifesaving.
Family history plays a powerful role in your risk. If you have a first-degree relative such as a mother, father, brother, or sister who has been diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm, you are 12 times more likely to develop one yourself. About 15 to 25 percent of people who need treatment for an abdominal aortic aneurysm have an immediate family member with the same type of aneurysm.
Other factors that should prompt you to discuss screening with your doctor include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, being over age 65, or having certain inherited conditions that affect connective tissue (the material that gives structure to your body), such as Marfan syndrome or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. These conditions can weaken the walls of your aorta and make aneurysms more likely.
You should seek immediate medical attention if you experience sudden, severe pain in your chest, abdomen, or back. This type of pain can feel like tearing or ripping and may signal that an aneurysm has ruptured, which is a life-threatening emergency requiring immediate treatment.
Diagnostic Methods for Identifying Aortic Aneurysm
The main test used to find out if you have an aortic aneurysm is an ultrasound scan of your abdomen. This test is painless and safe. During the procedure, a small device is placed on your belly, and images of the inside of your abdomen appear on a screen. The ultrasound uses sound waves to create pictures that show how blood flows through your aorta and can reveal any bulging or widening.
You will usually be told if you have an aneurysm at the end of the ultrasound test. Your doctor will also tell you how big the aneurysm is, which helps determine what happens next. Aneurysms are typically classified as small (3 centimeters to 4.4 centimeters), medium (4.5 centimeters to 5.4 centimeters), or large (5.5 centimeters or bigger).
When doctors need more detailed information about an aneurysm, they may recommend a CT scan (computed tomography scan). This test uses X-rays to create cross-sectional images of your body, building a detailed three-dimensional picture of your aorta. A CT scan can show the exact size and shape of an aneurysm, which is valuable information for planning treatment. Sometimes a liquid called contrast is given through a vein to make the blood vessels show up more clearly on the images.
Another imaging option is an MRI scan (magnetic resonance imaging), which uses a magnetic field and radio waves to create detailed pictures of your body's soft tissues. An MRI can diagnose an aneurysm and show its size and location without using radiation. This makes it a good option for people who need frequent monitoring over time.
For aneurysms in the chest area, doctors may use an echocardiogram, which uses sound waves to show how blood moves through the heart and blood vessels, including the aorta. A standard echocardiogram looks at the aorta from outside your body. If more detail is needed, a transesophageal echocardiogram may be performed, which examines the aorta from inside your body through your esophagus (the tube that connects your mouth to your stomach).
During a physical examination, your doctor may discover clues that suggest an aneurysm. They might detect a large throbbing mass in your abdomen that feels very painful, or they may hear an unusual sound when listening to your abdomen with a stethoscope. However, physical examination alone cannot confirm an aneurysm—imaging tests are needed for a definitive diagnosis.
Many aortic aneurysms are found by accident during tests performed for completely different reasons. For example, you might have a chest X-ray because of a persistent cough, and the X-ray shows signs of a widening aorta. This would then lead to more specific testing like a CT scan to confirm whether an aneurysm is present.
If you have been diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm, your doctor will want to see you regularly for imaging tests to monitor whether the aneurysm is growing. How often you need these tests depends on the size of your aneurysm, how quickly it might be growing, and your individual risk factors. Aneurysms typically grow slowly over many years, but monitoring is essential because as they increase in size, they expand more quickly and are more likely to rupture.
Diagnostics for Clinical Trial Qualification
When patients are being considered for enrollment in clinical trials studying aortic aneurysm treatments or monitoring strategies, specific diagnostic criteria are typically required. While the exact requirements vary depending on the particular study, imaging tests form the foundation of qualification assessments.
CT scans are commonly used as standard criteria for enrolling patients in clinical trials because they provide precise measurements of aneurysm size and location. A computed tomographic angiogram, which combines CT imaging with an injected contrast agent, offers detailed information about the aneurysm's relationship to surrounding blood vessels and organs. This type of imaging helps researchers determine whether a patient's anatomy is suitable for the treatment being studied.
For clinical trials, researchers need baseline measurements—detailed records of your aneurysm's size, shape, and characteristics before any treatment begins. These baseline imaging studies allow researchers to track changes over time and measure whether experimental treatments are effective. Follow-up imaging at regular intervals becomes part of the trial protocol, helping scientists understand how the condition progresses and how interventions affect that progression.
Some clinical trials may require additional specialized imaging or laboratory tests beyond standard diagnostic procedures. For example, trials investigating new medications might need blood tests to check kidney function before administering contrast agents, or genetic testing to identify patients with inherited conditions affecting connective tissue. These additional assessments ensure patient safety and help researchers understand which groups of patients might benefit most from new treatments.
Prognosis and Survival Rate
Prognosis
The outlook for people with aortic aneurysm depends greatly on whether the aneurysm is detected and treated before it ruptures. With close monitoring, good blood pressure control, and healthy lifestyle choices, many patients living with aortic aneurysms can do well and may not need surgical intervention. The most important factor affecting prognosis is the size of the aneurysm and how quickly it grows. Aneurysms that remain small and stable can often be managed with careful watching and lifestyle modifications. Smoking cessation is especially critical, as it is the most important way to slow the progress of an aneurysm.
Survival rate
The survival rates for aortic aneurysm vary dramatically depending on whether rupture occurs. According to available data, up to 81 percent of people having an abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture will die, with 32 percent dying before even reaching a hospital. Death occurs in about 55 to 64 percent of people experiencing rupture of an abdominal aortic aneurysm. These stark statistics highlight why early detection and prevention of rupture are so critical. With planned surgical repair before rupture, outcomes are much more favorable, though surgery itself carries risks that must be carefully weighed against the risk of rupture. Aortic aneurysms or aortic dissections were the cause of 9,904 deaths in 2019 in the United States, with about 59 percent of these deaths occurring among men.
