[Celiac News] Multidetector ct findings of splenic artery aneurysm in children with chronic liver disease

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Multidetector ct findings of splenic artery aneurysm in children with chronic liver disease
           

Abstract
 Background  Splenic artery aneurysm (SAA) is a well-known complication of chronic liver disease and portal hypertension in adults. The
 incidence of SAA in children undergoing selective hepatic angiography prior to liver transplantation is reported as 4%, but
 there are few systematic studies.
 
 
 
 Objective  To investigate the SAAs detected by multidetector CT angiography (MDCTA) among children with chronic liver disease.
 
 
 
 Materials and methods  A total of 124 children (71 girls, 53 boys; mean age 118 months; age range 5 days to 204 months) with chronic liver disease
 underwent MDCTA to display the vascular anatomy and any vascular complications during the pretransplantation period. Of these
 children, 23 also underwent coeliac angiography. The digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and MDCTA findings were compared.
 
 
 
 Results  SAAs were detected in 13 children (10.4%); none was detectable by US. All patients had more than one aneurysm; ten patients
 had more than three. In all except one patient, the SAAs were located only in the intraparenchymal branches of the splenic
 artery; in one patient they were located in the intraparenchymal segment and in the distal third of the splenic artery. The
 mean size of the aneurysms was 6.5 mm (range 2.5–18 mm). All patients with aneurysms had splenomegaly and vascular collaterals.
 Nine of the children with SAAs had portal vein pathologies (two occlusions, two stenoses, five dilatations). A statistically
 significant difference existed with regard to the size of spleen (P < 0.05) and patient age (P < 0.05) between children with SAAs and children without SAAs. There was an increased risk of SAAs in patients with portal
 vein pathologies. In 19 patients without SAAs on MDCTA, no SAAs were seen on DSA.
 
 
 
 Conclusions  It is likely that the incidence of SAA in children with chronic liver disease will increase with improved survival of children
 with long-standing portal hypertension and chronic liver disease. MDCTA with multiplanar reconstruction is a noninvasive and
 effective means of imaging paediatric patients with SAAs, especially during the peritransplantation period, which is considered
 to be a time of significant risk for SAA rupture in this patient population.
 
 
 
   Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Original ArticleDOI 10.1007/s00247-008-0976-9Authors
      Esra Meltem Kayahan Ulu, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara TurkeyIsmail Kirbas, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara TurkeyFeride Kural Emiroglu, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara TurkeyBanu Cakir, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara TurkeyAli Harman, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara TurkeyCoskun Bakar, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Public Health Ankara TurkeyMehmet Coskun, BaÅŸkent University Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology Fevzi Çakmak cad. 10. Sok. No. 45 Bahçelievler Ankara Turkey
   

   
      Journal Pediatric RadiologyOnline ISSN 1432-1998Print ISSN 0301-0449 (Source: Pediatric Radiology)
           

http://www.springerlink.com/content/f17556713h87m065/