Pediatric aortoiliac injury following blunt abdominal trauma: A case report

INTRODUCTION The most common mechanism of aortic injury involves motor vehicle collisions resulting in aortic disruptions, occurring almost exclusively in the chest. Injury to the abdominal aorta following blunt trauma is nearly twenty times less likely to occur than the thoracic aorta. Because of the low incidence, there are few reports regarding the presentation and repair of these particular injuries, especially in the pediatric population. PRESENTATION OF CASE We present a case of a 7-year-old boy involved in a high speed motor vehicle accident with an abdominal aorta transection at the aortic bifurcation extending into the left iliac artery. The injury was repaired using bovine pericardium with the adventitia and intima of the vessel approximated over the bovine bridge. DISCUSSION Primary repair of thoracic aortic injury has been thoroughly described in the literature with good outcomes yet, abdominal aortic repair remains ambiguous. Few techniques and materials have been described with even less data surrounding the long-term outcomes. CONCLUSION Bovine pericardium is a strong and stable acellular collagenous material with the potential to accelerate endothelialization and tissue regeneration. This remains an interesting field of research as stenosis and pseudo-coarction data have yet to be determined.