Good News

What is an abdominal aortic aneurysm and why is it so dangerous?

Abdominal aortic aneurysm is a ballooning out of a section of the aorta in the abdomen. The aorta is the main artery transporting blood away from the heart to the rest of the body. As it passes through the abdomen, where it is called the abdominal aorta, it branches into two smaller arteries that bring blood to the lower half of the body.

An abdominal aortic aneurysm weakens the walls of the blood vessel, leaving it vulnerable to bursting open, or rupturing, and spilling massive amounts of blood into the abdominal cavity. Without treatment, 80 percent of those who have an abdominal aortic aneurysm die when the blood vessel ruptures. With surgery prior to a rupture, the death rate drops to less than 5 percent.

Old age, diseases, injury, or defects in the wall of the aorta may cause an abdominal aortic aneurysm to develop. Each year, at least 40,000 Americans develop this and it is estimated that up to 2 million people may have these dangerously enlarged blood vessels but are never diagnosed.

Because an abdominal aortic aneurysm takes many years to develop, often when patients are diagnosed, they may be too old or sick for traditional surgery. Rush University Medical Center has developed a pioneering treatment without invasive surgery.

The new procedure, known as endovascular stent grafting, is largely done for older patients and others who are not good candidates for traditional surgery. The stent-graft procedure has the advantage of causing less blood loss and providing a more rapid recovery period and a shorter hospital stay than traditional surgery.

One of only a few medical centers in the Midwest to offer this treatment

For nearly 170 years, Rush has been leading the way in developing innovative and often life-saving treatments. But physicians and scientists at Rush are not only committed to the science of medicine. They are also committed to the art of medicine. This unique combination of research and patient care has earned Rush national rankings in more specialty areas than any other hospital in Illinois, as reported in U.S.News & World Report’s 2005 “America’s Best Hospitals” issue.

Today, Rush is a thriving center for basic and clinical research, with physicians and scientists involved in hundreds of research projects developing and testing the effectiveness and safety of new therapies and medical devices. Some of the most exciting projects at Rush are under way in the Robert H. Cohn and Terri Cohn Research Building, a state-of-the-art facility where investigators are conducting research to identify the causes of a wide range of diseases.

In addition to its mission in patient care, education and research, Rush maintains a strong commitment to the Chicago community. Rush reaches out to the community through such offerings as the Rush Community Services Initiatives Program, designed to address the social and health care needs of residents and the Science and Math Excellence Network, a public-private partnership to improve the science and math skills of inner-city children.