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 diagn
