[Prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease]

The association of the abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) to the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is questionable. Both entities share the same risk factors and physiopathology, which is based on a persistent pro- -inflammatory response, proteolysis and excessive extracellular matrix turnover.

To determine the AAA prevalence in a sample of patients with COPD.

Identification of patients with COPD and abdominal CT, hospitalized in a level 2 hospital between January 2015 and December 2016.

In a sample with 100 patients, 5 presented an AAA. There were no significant differences between patients with and without AAA regarding gender (100% versus 69,5% male), age (74,80±6,22 versus 71,23±12,36 years), comorbidities (myocardial infarction 0% versus 1,1%; stroke 0% versus 10,5%), cardiovascular risk factors (diabetes mellitus 20% versus 23,2%; hypertension 80% versus 50,5%) and spirometric results. Patients with AAA were significantly more medicated with acetylsalicylic acid and had more aortic thrombi (P=0,031 and P=0,002, respectively). No correlation was found between the aortic size and the forced expiratory flow in one second values.

The AAA prevalence of our sample was 5%, twice the described for the Portuguese population (2,37%). This is the first study conducted in Portugal to determine the AAA prevalence in COPD patients.

The study of the relationship between both diseases could contribute to a more effective screening of AAA, by determining a group with increased risk, which could lead to a reduction of the mortality rates associated with the ruptured aneurysm.