Traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the posterior tibial artery treated by endovascular coil embolization

Abstract

Pseudoaneurysms of the posterior tibial artery are rare, but a high index of suspicion should be maintained in evaluating patients who present with a painful swelling after arterial trauma. We report a case of a posterior tibial artery pseudoaneurysm in a young patient sustained from a laceration and associated profuse arterial bleeding. Because of the risk of rupture and the presence of an infection and high venous flow, an embolization of the aneurysm proximally and distally was carried out after verifying that distal collateral circulation ensured foot vascularization. Endovascular treatment of a pseudoaneurysm seems to be a safe therapeutic and noninvasive choice, particularly in young patients in whom the presence of collaterals guarantees distal vascularization and in whom the procedure can be safely performed in the presence of a superficial wound infection.