A patient with fever and an abdominal aortic aneurysm
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, The Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Glossop Road, Sheffield, UK
- Dr GD Barlow, Specialist Registrar in Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Stracathro Hospital, Brechin, Angus DD9 7QA, UK
- Accepted 20 January 1999
Abstract
A 55-year-old man with an abdominal aortic aneurysm presented with fever and abdominal pain 3 weeks after an episode of Salmonella gastroenteritis. His symptoms persisted despite antimicrobial therapy. Two abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans showed no evidence of aortitis. His abdominal pain worsened and further investigation including a third CT scan demonstrated a leaking aortic aneurysm. The wall of the aorta was shown to contain Gram-negative bacilli. This case illustrates the difficulty in diagnosing bacterial aortitis.
