PANCREATICODUODENAL ARTERIES ANEURYSMS: EVALUATION OF FREQUENCY AND ASSOCIATION WITH CELIAC ARTERY STENOSIS DUE TO COMPRESSION BY MEDIAN ARCUATE LIGAMENT

The aim of the study is to evaluate the prevalence of pancreaticoduodenal arteries (PDA) aneurysms in a large population, and to define possible correlations with celiac artery stenosis due to compression by the median arcuate ligament. Radiological reports of abdominal contrast-enhanced CT scans of 18,180 patients were scrutinized to identify patients with true PDA aneurysms. Two abdominal radiologists classified the aneurysms according to size, location and morphology and scored the presence of celiac artery stenosis due to either median arcuate ligament compression or atherosclerotic disease. Eleven true PDA aneurysms were identified in 10 patients. Nine out of 10 patients had stenosis of the celiac artery, in which 8 cases (80%) was due to compression by the median arcuate ligament of the diaphragm, which likely represents the most common underlying etiology. In our population, the prevalence of reported PDA aneurysms was 0.055.