What Are the Signs of a Ruptured Aortic Aneurysm?
An aortic aneurysm is a weak spot in the wall of the biggest artery in the body, called the aorta, causing the artery to balloon outward at that point. A ruptured aortic aneurysm is a life-threatening condition where the aorta bursts and catastrophic internal bleeding occurs. As the rupture generally happens suddenly, the first signs may be pain and collapse and, if successful surgical treatment is not carried out straight away, these are closely followed by death. In those patients where a ruptured aortic aneurysm is not immediately fatal, there will generally be pain in the back or abdomen, low blood pressure and a pulsating abdominal lump. Other signs associated with a ruptured aortic aneurysm include a pale, sweaty appearance, a weak, rapid pulse, and fainting or vomiting. The pulsating lump typically found in the abdomen is the swollen, ruptured aortic aneurysm itself, and this is often found to hurt when examined. It is likely to be situated above and slightly to the left of the
