The diagnosis was made by arteriography. The patient underwent angioplasty and stenting of the superior mesenteric artery before the operation, which consisted of resection of the aneurysm and reimplantation of the left colic and the sigmoidal arteries separately in the aorta. We believe that this is the first reported case managed by angioplasty in combination with surgery, as well as reimplantation of the branches of the inferior mesenteric artery.
Visceral artery aneurysms, although uncommon, are being increasingly detected.
1 Aneurysms of the inferior mesenteric artery are uncommon, and only isolated cases have been reported. Authors of the most recent report found only 23 cases in the literature 2 since 1861, when Peacock 3 described the first case. He was a smoker and had suffered myocardial infarction 8 years before. The physical exam revealed an abdominal aneurysmal mass in the left periumbilical region, accompanied by a systolic bruit. To avoid the intestinal ischemia during the operation, the patient underwent angioplasty and stenting of the superior mesenteric artery 3 days before surgery.