[Endovascular therapy of infrarenal aortic aneurysms: preinterventional imaging and follow-up]

Imaging plays an important role in the selection of patients with infrarenal aortic aneurysms suitable for interventional therapy and preinterventional workup. It is also an important tool for follow-up after stent-graft placement. Cross-sectional imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allow the delineation of the vessel lumen and side branches. Modern postprocessing techniques permit precise measurement of aneurysm properties such as the length and diameter of the proximal and distal neck and the length and diameter of the aneurysm. Evaluation of the access vessel is also possible. During follow-up after stent-graft placement, it is important to detect possible endoleaks and further growth of the aneurysm sac. Furthermore fractures of the stent struts, migration of the stent, and in-stent thrombosis must to be detected. This review provides an overview of the pros and cons of the different imaging modalities in pre- and postinterventional studies. In addition the most important criteria for the exclusion of infrarenal aortic aneurysms and for patient follow-up are presented.