Dilatation of the bile and pancreatic ducts due to compression by an unruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA): A case ameliorated by an endovascular stent grafting

Abstract

An 88-year-old woman was referred to our hospital due to abdominal discomfort. Imaging modalities showed an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) compressing the duodenum, the distal common bile duct and the head of the pancreas concurrent with distension of the proximal bile and main pancreatic ducts in the body and tail of the pancreas. After admission, the patient underwent endovascular stent grafting to treat the AAA. The size of the aneurysm decreased and the dilatation of the bile and pancreatic ducts became less prominent. AAA should therefore be considered as a possible diagnosis in patients with findings of dilatation of the bile ducts in the absence of stones or tumors in the pancreaticobiliary system. This is the first reported case of a patient treated for both AAA and dilatation of the bile and pancreatic ducts with endovascular stent grafting via the femoral artery. © 2012 The Japanese Society of Internal Medicine.