Gastric Banding Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Gastric Banding, including details on laparoscopic gastric banding, stomach stapling, gastric bypass, risks, diet.

Incidental splenic artery aneurysm during laparoscopic gastric banding.

Sorensen B, de la Torre R, Scott S

Department of General Surgery, University of Missouri Health Care, Columbia, MO 65212, USA. sorensenb@health.missouri.edu

Splenic artery aneurysm occurs in approximately 1% of the population, and is four times more common in females. Women with a history of multiple pregnancies carry the highest risk. These aneurysms are usually incidental findings. Rupture carries a substantial mortality. Management choices include open, laparoscopic, and endovascular procedures. We report a 44-year-old female with a BMI of 56 who underwent laparoscopic gastric banding. Upon exploring the abdomen, a 4-cm splenic artery aneurysm was discovered. The aneurysm was excluded by proximal and distal surgical clips. The patient's postoperative course was unremarkable. This surgical technique is simple, safe, minimally invasive, and provides adequate therapy without incurring the morbidity associated with aneurysmectomy and splenectomy. It is likely that this problem will be encountered again by bariatric surgeons, because this area is commonly exposed. Therefore, this is something that bariatric surgeons should be aware of, be able to recognize, and understand the various therapeutic options.

Published 18 January 2006 in Obes Surg, 16(1): 85-7.
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