Abdominal Aneurysm Diagnosis: Symptoms, Tests & What to Expect

Abdominal aortic aneurysms occur when large blood vessels supplying blood to the stomach, legs and pelvis get too big or balloon outward. Symptoms include a rapid heart rate, clammy skin, nausea, vomiting and pain in the back or stomach. Diagnosis is through exam or diagnostic test.

Diagnosis

• Your doctor may discover an abdominal aortic aneurysm during a routine exam, or while using a variety of imaging tools to check other conditions.

CT Scan

• Abdominal aortic aneurysm can be diagnosed through a computerized tomography (CT) scan. The patient lies flat inside a machine that makes detailed x-rays of organs and blood vessels in the body.

MRI

• Diagnosis of abdominal aneurysm can be done with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Dyes are injected into the body and the MRI scans the entire body using magnetic fields.

Ultrasonography

• Ultrasonography involves the doctor holding a device called a transducer over your abdomen. The device produces sound waves which bounce off blood vessels to detect an abdominal aortic aneurysm.

X-Rays

• Chest x-rays are used to detect abdominal aortic aneurysms. Sometimes patients without symptoms will have a chest x-ray for another medical reason and discover an aneurysm.