Infectious aortitis caused by Salmonella Dublin followed by aneurysmal dilatation of the abdominal aorta

Abstract

A 67-year-old woman was admitted for severe abdominal pain (stomach ache). Computed tomography (CT) revealed gas along the abdominal aortic wall. A blood culture was positive for Salmonella dublin, a gram-negative bacillus that is rare in humans. Treatment with an antibiotic improved the inflammatory signs; however, on the 11th hospital day, the patient complained of sudden severe abdominal pain. Enhanced CT revealed a pseudoaneurysm surrounded by a periaortic abscess. The infected aortic wall, including the aneurysm, was resected and an extra-anatomic bypass was constructed between the axillary artery and the external iliac arteries. The patient recovered fully and her course has been uneventful for the past two years since her discharge.