Symptomatic aneurysm of the abdominal aorta: successful surgery in elderly patients, one with a massive aneurysm

Three cases of symptomatic aneurysm of the abdominal aorta are presented. One patient age 96, described with this condition, is perhaps the oldest patient in the literature. In another patient the aneurysm measured two feet in length, extending from the diaphragm to the pelvic outlet. This was perhaps the biggest aneurysm yet recorded. All three patients presented difficult medical problems, withstood the operaion, and were discharged from the hospitals with successful results. Aneurysm of the abdominal aorta is a serious condition. It is commonly found in patients in their seventh decade. The condition carries a high mortality with advancing age, especially when associated with other diseases. In symptomatic aneurysms where expansion, dissection or frank hemorrhage is suspected, emergency resection and replacement with dacron graft is carried out.