A contemporary review of non-invasive methods in diagnosing abdominal aortic aneurysms

Background: Currently, the impact of abdominal aortic aneurysm may be changingdespite the aging population, but may be ambiguous given the decline in smoking, the useof screening methods, and integration of non-surgical treatment. Objective: This reviewaimed to assess the most common currently used non-invasive methods to identifyabdominal aortic aneurysm, namely ultrasound and computed tomography. Methods: PRISMAguidelines were utilized to retrieve original articles from the past five years. Allretrospective and prospective studies/trials were included, but limited to US and CTabdominal aortic aneurysm diagnostic imaging methods. Qualitative assessment of studyquality is described. Results: Three of the six studies reported abdominal aorticaneurysm screening data. The estimated prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm for thethree studies ranged from 4.5% to 6.2%. CT had slightly higher sensitivity and US hadhigher specificity for abdominal aortic aneurysm diagnosis. Two of the described studiesassessed technical issues and problems with contemporary imaging of abdominal aorticaneurysm. The final article described measuring abdominal aortic aneurysm function ofaortic distensibility and its pulse wave velocity for a comprehensive assessment of theabdominal aortic aneurysm via standard CT imaging. Conclusions: Both US and CT areuseful diagnostic imaging modalities for abdominal aortic aneurysm, but remain withunique pitfalls and propensity for errors, notwithstanding patient-related errors.Technical issues in imaging with both ultrasound and CT are not straightforward. Thepotential value of an integrated CT protocol with CT-US fusion and/or assessment ofaortic function rather than solely aortic anatomy may further diminish diagnosticcomplexities.