[Aneurysm of the abdominal aorta].
OBJECTIVE
Three clinical cases of Aneurysm in the abdominal Aorta are presented, in order to make a clinical review of aneurysms in the abdominal Aorta (AAA) and underline the importance of their early diagnosis in Primary Care, given the risk factors.


METHODS
A retrospective, descriptive analysis of three cases of AAA from 1991. SITE. The patients studied had attended the hospital emergency department in the Alcoy Health area.


RESULTS
Case 1: A patient, who attended because of three days of bilateral lumbar pain of a colic type spreading to the mesogastrium, which did not respond to treatment for nephritic colic. The patient died in a few hours, with the diagnosis of hypovolaemic shock caused by a burst AAA. Case 2: A patient with generalised continuous abdominal pain, which over 12 hours had been located in the lower right hemiabdomen, who was admitted with the provisional diagnosis of acute pyelonephritis. Case 3: A patient who, after an emergency surgical intervention where the diagnosis of AAA was confirmed, presented after a month a clinical picture consistent with a cerebral vascular accident and died afterwards because of renal failure.


CONCLUSIONS
Given the present increase of patients diagnosed in hospital as suffering AAA in our Health Area, we urge that special attention be paid to the early diagnosis of this pathology. It is important to look actively for this pathology in patients with chronic pathologies of high prevalence and include it in Primary Care preventive programmes.
Blanquer
J J
JJ
Servicio de Cirugía, Hospital Virgen de los Lirios, Alcoy, Alicante.
Rapa
M
M
Adam
A
A
Ortola
P
P
Aracil
C
C
Baltasar
A
A
Marcote
E
E
D000368:Aged; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011379:Prognosis; D014463:Ultrasonography
Aneurisma de aorta abdominal.