Celiac Artery Aneurysm: Anyone else with same illness?

Hi everyone, Canadian here and a new member to this exclusive club.

Similar story to many, I had a CT scan for something completely unrelated and it came back saying I have a 17 mm partially calcified celiac artery aneurysm. That was about 3 weeks ago and I’m waiting for my appt to be scheduled with the vascular surgeon.

Like others in this thread, I also get twinges (not painful, just discomfort) just under the rib, usually my left side. They’ve been there a while and didn’t think much of it, but after this diagnosis and reading the experiences of others here, I’m thinking it’s related.

Not sure whether I want the VS to say I need surgery or wait & see, but anxious to find out one way or another. I’ll report back when I know!

I am taking blood pressure and 1 mg aspirin per the ER I went to. Had my physical 2 weeks ago and my BP was normal, but was elevated at the ER. When they conferred with a VS contact the ER Doc had, they suggested it to keep the pressure low to control the size of the aneurism and the aspirin to I believe thin the blood through the dissection to prevent clot. the dissection is at the aneurism like bypassing through the wall.
Went to GP yesterday and he's keeping me on them. He did tell me not to work out until I meet with a VS to prevent any stress on it. I am still waiting for the VS to call as when I called them following the referral from my GP, they were discussing if they would be able to take my case. So needless to say, still up in the air.

Just wondering, @briandem, are you taking meds for your blood pressure?

As many of the Connect members were given restrictions on lifting, I'm wondering if you were you given any weight restrictions regarding lifting?

Thanks for your reply Andytheman! So you have had this with dissection for 2 years? Have you gotten a second opinion? It's tough because of the double rarity of this aneurysm + dissection, means less doctors with enough knowledge an experience, so finding the right one that will actually put themselves in your position. Sorry you are going through that, I have been panicking for just a couple days, so can not imagine. I did et a call back from the referral people who found a VS that will see me today, so i will post after that happens.

I have the same celiac aneurysm with a tear in it. It is currently at 3 cm. I am concerned because I went to a hospital emergency room for something not related with aneurysms.

Of course as usual the ER doctor ordered a CT scan with dye. He came back to my examination room and said “ we are going to transfer you to a trauma hospital for emergency surgery because you have a celiac aneurysm and it has a tear in it, It’s presently at
3 cm.”
So they shipped me to the trauma hospital and when I got there they already had the CT scan image. The cardiovascular surgeon acknowledged the aneurysm and said that “because it’s not bleeding, we feel you can be discharged today but you will need to come back later to get it taken care of “
The discharge instructions were that I see my own cardiovascular surgeon (I actually have one) ASAP.

The next day I meet with him and they did a sonogram and he came into the room and said that he didn’t see anything,” see you next year!” I said “wait a minute, could it burst?” He said “it could but we have ways to take care of that”

I thought about how quickly things could go bad if it burst and nobody is around. I was previously told that it would probably be fatal if not addressed quick enough.

For 2 years my cardiovascular surgeon acknowledged I had one and now he says that he didn’t see anything.
2 hospital cardiovascular surgeons saw it but my guy all of a sudden says that he didn’t see anything? And tells me to come back in a year??

If he didn’t see anything why is he acknowledging that it could burst. It’s a torn aneurysm for crying out loud!

He was clearly annoyed by my being in his office while he had patients that had earlier made appointments. He rushed out of the room and I got out to follow the arrows on the floor leading me to the (rude) secretary’s desk.

She’s the one that said “where’s your mask?” as soon as I walked into the lobby. I had forgotten to bring my mask that was required then.

She gave me an unfriendly stare and handed me a mask. (I always wear one for doctors visits as they were still required at that time and because I had had covid months ago and am now covid free). That was it, “see you next year “ why would he say that if he said he didn’t see anything? I don’t have any pain so does that mean I don’t have it? I also have another cardiovascular doctor. He’s a cardiologist and I don’t know if he deals with aneurysms.

Thanks Teresa, yes they do, but when we called they said that they were not in our network, so feel the insurance company is touting doctors that may have at one time been in the network but are no longer. They are supposed to update every 6 days so I highly doubt that many left in the previous 6 days. My doctor's office is working up a referral and will find one for us that is in the network so hopefully will hear back soon.
As many others here have said, I feel like a ticking time bomb and while supposed to keep my blood pressure down, how is it possible when the anxiety is through the roof!

Hello @briandem and welcome to Mayo Connect. I can certainly understand your concern. I hope that you soon have an appointment with a vascular surgeon. Does your network offer you options for vascular surgeons?

I look forward to hearing from you again. Will you post as you have questions and concerns?

Hey All, Last week I was diagnosed with the celiac aneurysm at 1.0 cm with dissection. As many others here, been a very worrisome time. Trying to find a Vascular Surgeon in my network has been a challenge. My issue started with severe upper abdomen and mid back pain that was very painful and couldn't sleep because I couldn't lay on my back or side. They did CT scan and ended up finding the aneurism. I guess this is rare, but with the dissection with it, it is double rare, so as I am sure with many of you, its a scary feeling. While my size is only 1.0, and everything I have seen minimizes the severity of it, the dissection really adds to my concern. I will post next after I meet with a VS (Hopefully soon).

Yes, the doppler and ultrasound are both scheduled the week of the 22nd this month. I'm not sure how long the referral to Mayo will take. I sent the request in last week and asked for a case evaluation. Will they just review my scan and call my doctor or call me to ask questions?

@johnnyfive

It sounds like your doctor is being thorough. Has the doppler for the legs been scheduled yet?