Full calcium jacket: Conservative management of a traumatic aortic injury

Abstract

We describe the case of an elderly male patient who presented with a proximal descending aortic aneurysm after a motorcycle accident in 1977. We concluded that the aorta had been transected at that time. In a rather unconventional manner, the aneurysm developed a circumferential layer of calcification that provided mechanical stability and likely prevented further degeneration. We chose not to pursue surgical intervention at the late stage of his presentation. The patient has been followed up for a period of 30 years, with no change in the size and shape of the now completely calcified aneurysm.

Keywords

• Aorta
• Aortic aneurysm
• Calcification
• Rupture
• Thoracic injury
• Traumatic aortic injury