Study of 200 Consecutive Patients with Abdominal Aneurysms Diagnosed by Intravenous Aortography Comparative Longevity with and without Aneurysmectomy

Abstract

Statistical analysis, with special reference to longevity, is presented for a series of 200 consecutive patients diagnosed by means of intravenous abdominal aortography. During a follow-up period of 6 years, 104 patients underwent aneurysmectomy; 96 did not have resection of the aneurysm because operation was contraindicated, laparotomy disclosed a nonresectable aneurysm, or operation was refused by the patient. At the end of the study, 31% of the group having resection and 51% of the group not treated surgically had died. The majority of deaths in the surgically treated group occurred within 2 months after operation. In the other group the greatest number of deaths occurred from 6 to 12 months after diagnosis. Thus, although the immediate mortality was much higher for the group undergoing aneurysmectomy, the overall mortality rate for the 6-year period was significantly lower for this group than for the other group. In both groups, myocardial infarction and cancer accounted for more deaths than the operation or rupture of the aneurysm. Therefore, the associated diseases of the age group are determinants of the prognosis, rather than the resection alone.