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(Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 2005;25:1558.)
© 2005 American Heart Association, Inc.

Brief Reviews

Biomechanical Determinants of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Rupture

David A. Vorp; Jonathan P. Vande Geest

From the Department of Surgery (D.A.V., J.P.V.G.), Division of Vascular Surgery, Department of Bioengineering (D.A.V.), McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine (D.A.V.), University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Correspondence to David A. Vorp, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, Departments of Surgery and Bioengineering, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, 100 Technology Drive, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. E-mail vorpda{at}upmc.edu

Series Editor: Robert W. Thompson
Redox Mechanisms in Blood Vessels
ATVB in Focus

Previous Brief Reviews in this Series:

•Powell JT, Brady AR. Detection, Management, and prospects for the medical treatment of small abdominal aortic anesrysms. 2004;24:241–246.
•Daugherty A, Cassis LA. Mouse models of abdominal aaortic aneurysms. 2004;24:429–434.
•Pasterkamp G, Galis ZS, de Kleijn GPV. Expansive arterial remodeling: location, location, location. 2004;24:650–657.

Rupture of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) represents a significant clinical event, having a mortality rate of 90% and being currently ranked as the 13th leading cause of death in the US. The ability to reliably evaluate the susceptibility of a particular AAA to rupture on a case-specific basis could vastly improve the clinical management of these patients. Because AAA rupture represents a mechanical failure of the degenerated aortic wall, biomechanical considerations are important to understand this process and to improve our predictions of its occurrence. Presented here is an overview of research to date related to the biomechanics of AAA rupture. This includes a summary of results related to ex vivo and in vivo mechanical testing, noninvasive AAA wall stress estimations, and potential mechanisms of AAA wall weakening. We conclude with a demonstration of a biomechanics-based approach to predicting AAA rupture on a patient-specific basis, which may ultimately prove to be superior to the widely and currently used maximum diameter criterion.

Careful consideration of the biomechanics of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) may potentially lead to an improved, case-specific prediction of AAA rupture potential, thereby significantly improving the clinical management of these patients. Presented here is an overview of research aimed at improving our understanding of the biomechanics of AAA.

Key Words: abdominal aortic aneurysm • biomechanics • rupture • strength • stress