When Should a Scan Be Carried Out?

A scan should always be carried out when an AAA is suspected.

Features of a suspected abdominal aortic aneurysm include:

  • Unexplained back or abdominal pain in an older patient
  • Renal colic in an older patient
  • Syncopal episode in an older patient
  • Clinical examination
  • Risk factors – ischaemic heart disease (IHD)/peripheral vascular disease (PVD)/age

The more risk factors, the greater the risk.

Learning bite

The combination of a number of risk factors should lead to an increasingly high index of suspicion.