Unsuspected chronic traumatic aortic pseudoaneurysm--what to do about it. Late post-traumatic aortic pseudoaneurysm

A 59-year-old man with multiple risk factors for coronary artery disease who had been in a motor vehicle accident 30 years earlier presented with new-onset angina pectoris. During cardiac catheterization, an ill-defined dense area was noted in the mediastinum. Chest radiography showed an area of calcification around the proximal descending aorta. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a pseudoaneurysm of the proximal descending thoracic aorta. Due to the typical location (aortic isthmus), the pseudoaneurysm was thought to be the result of deceleration injury sustained by the patient in the previous motor vehicle accident. The present manuscript discusses the natural history and management options of an uncommon consequence of traumatic aortic injury: chronic posttraumatic aortic pseudoaneurysm.