Christina Lin, MD, Sumana Kesh, MD, Ashwini Mahajan, MD Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara, Santa Clara, CA
Introduction: Visceral artery aneurysms are rare pathologies with reported incidence rates between 0.01% to 0.2%; even rarer are hepatic artery dissections (HAD). Most aneurysms rupture or are incidentally found on autopsy, but imaging advancements has enabled earlier identification of aneurysms; in this case, a HAD.
Case Description/Methods: A 77-year-old female with medical history pertinent for sickle cell trait, acquired factor VIII inhibitor coagulopathy, history of type 2 thoracic aortic dissection, and hypertension presented to the emergency room with a week of mild fatigue, postprandial epigastric burning pain, and intermittent stabbing right upper quadrant pain.
Right upper quadrant ultrasound demonstrated a hypervascularized right hepatic lobe mass with large tortuous internal vessels. CT abdomen & pelvis without contrast showed a large hypodensity in the right liver with curvilinear density. MRI demonstrated large arteriovenous malformation (AVM) within the right hepatic lobe and focal hepatic parenchymal hemorrhage centered within AVM nidus.
Gastroenterology was consulted and CT angiogram findings were suspicious for common HAD, proper hepatic & intrahepatic pseudoaneurysms, and intrahepatic rupture. Interventional radiology was consulted. Hepatic angiogram showed a large defect in the proximal hepatic artery with brisk opacification, thought to represent a pseudoaneurysm. This prompted framing coil placement across the large defect and coils extending from the proper hepatic artery to the common hepatic artery with significant reduction in forward flow & pseudoaneurysm opacification. Per hepatobiliary & vascular surgery, no need for additional surgical intervention.
Postoperative course was complicated by fever & leukocytosis, worsening kidney injury, and anemia; attributed to the procedure and resolved with supportive care. Patient discharged on postoperative day 8 with outpatient follow-up.
Discussion: This case highlights the importance of imaging for earlier detection of hepatic artery aneurysms (HAA) in minimizing risk of catastrophic hemorrhage. HAA are rare but clinically important given they are associated with high incidence of rupture and mortality up to 20%. Although surgery is preferred for extrahepatic findings, endovascular interventions are favored for intrahepatic findings depending on size and presence of pseudoaneurysms, such as this case. They have led to more favorable short & longer-term outcomes and lower mortality & morbidity rates, particularly in poor surgical candidates.
Figure: Figure 1. Hepatic angiography and embolization was performed. A large defect with brisk opacification of the proper and common hepatic arteries were seen (A), prompting deploy of a framing coil. (B) Embolization was then performed on the hepatic artery with three coils (5mm, 6mm, & 8mm). Coils were examined from proper hepatic artery to the common hepatic artery. (C) Following placement of the coils, significant reduction in flow and opacification of the pseudoaneurysm was seen.
Disclosures:
Christina Lin indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Sumana Kesh: Novocure – Stock-publicly held company(excluding mutual/index funds). Pfizer – Stock-publicly held company(excluding mutual/index funds). Sanofi – Stock-publicly held company(excluding mutual/index funds).
Ashwini Mahajan indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Christina Lin, MD, Sumana Kesh, MD, Ashwini Mahajan, MD. E0536 - Hepatic Artery Dissection – A Case Report, ACG 2022 Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts. Charlotte, NC: American College of Gastroenterology.
