BACKGROUND AAA is a disease affecting predominantly male patients ≥65 years and its dreaded complications such as rupture led to population-based screening programs as preventive measure. Nonetheless, the supposed prevalence may have been overestimated, so that targeted screening of high risk populations may be more effective. This study was performed to evaluate the prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) of an inpatient high-risk cohort and to estimate the co-prevalence of lower extremity arterial aneurysms. METHODS Participants: 566 male inpatients, ≥ 65 years of age, hospitalized for suspected or known cardiopulmonary disease. Primary and secondary outcome measures: Maximal infrarenal aortic diameters using abdominal ultrasound (leading edge to leading edge method). Upon detection of an AAA (diameter ≥ 30 mm), the lower extremity arteries were examined with regard to associated aneurysms. RESULTS In 40 of 566 patients (7.1%) AAAs were detectable. Fourteen patients (2.5%) had a first diagnosis of AAA, none of which was large (> 55 mm), the remaining 26 patients were either already diagnosed (14 patients, 2.5%) or previously repaired (12 patients, 2.1%). The three most common main diagnoses at discharge were acute coronary syndrome (43.3%), congestive heart failure (32.2%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (12%). The cohort showed a distinct cardiovascular risk profile comprising arterial hypertension (82.9%), diabetes mellitus (44.4%), and a history of smoking (57.6%). In multivariate analysis, three-vessel coronary artery disease (Odds ratio (OR): 4.5, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.3-8.9, p <  0.0001) and history of smoking (OR: 3.7, CI: 1.6-8.6, p <  0.01) were positively associated with AAA, while diabetes mellitus (OR: 0.5, CI: 0.2-0.9, p = 0.0295) showed a negative association with AAA. Among the subjects with AAA, we found two large iliac and two large popliteal aneurysms. CONCLUSION Ultrasound screening in male inpatients, hospitalized for suspected or known cardiopulmonary disease, revealed a high AAA prevalence in comparison to the present epidemiological screening programs. There was a moderate proportion of newly-screen detected AAA and additional screening of the lower extremity arteries yielded some associated aneurysms with indication for possible intervention.

中文翻译：

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在因可疑或已知心肺疾病住院的男性中，腹主动脉瘤和相关的下肢动脉瘤的患病率。

背景技术AAA是一种主要影响65岁以上男性患者的疾病，其可怕的并发症（例如破裂）导致了基于人群的筛查计划作为预防措施。尽管如此，假定的患病率可能已被高估，所以针对高危人群的针对性筛查可能更有效。这项研究的目的是评估住院高危人群的腹主动脉瘤（AAA）的患病率，并估计下肢动脉瘤的患病率。方法研究对象：566名≥65岁的男性住院患者，因可疑或已知的心肺疾病住院。主要和次要结局指标：使用腹部超声检查（从前缘到前缘方法）最大肾下主动脉直径。在检测到AAA（直径≥30 mm）后，检查下肢动脉相关的动脉瘤。结果在566例患者中有40例（7.1％）可检测到AAA。初诊为AAA的患者有14例（占2.5％），没有一个大（> 55 mm），其余26例已经被确诊（14例，占2.5％）或已被修复（12例，占2.1％）。出院时最常见的三种主要诊断是急性冠状动脉综合征（43.3％），充血性心力衰竭（32.2％）和慢性阻塞性肺疾病（12％）。队列显示出明显的心血管疾病风险特征，包括动脉高血压（82.9％），糖尿病（44.4％）和吸烟史（57.6％）。在多变量分析中，三支血管冠状动脉疾病（几率（OR）：4.5，95％置信区间（CI）：2.3-8.9，p <0.0001）和吸烟史（OR：3.7，CI：1.6-8.6，p <0.01）与AAA呈正相关，而糖尿病（OR：0.5，CI：0.2-0.9，p = 0.0295）与AAA呈负相关。在患有AAA的受试者中，我们发现了两个大的动脉瘤和两个大的pop动脉瘤。结论与目前的流行病学筛查程序相比，对因怀疑或已知的心肺疾病住院的男性住院患者进行超声筛查显示出较高的AAA患病率。新筛查到的AAA比例适中，对下肢动脉的额外筛查产生了一些相关的动脉瘤，提示可能进行干预。我们发现了两个大动脉瘤和两个大pop动脉瘤。结论与目前的流行病学筛查程序相比，对因怀疑或已知的心肺疾病住院的男性住院患者进行超声筛查显示出较高的AAA患病率。新筛查到的AAA比例适中，对下肢动脉的额外筛查产生了一些相关的动脉瘤，提示可能进行干预。我们发现了两个大动脉瘤和两个大pop动脉瘤。结论与目前的流行病学筛查程序相比，对因怀疑或已知的心肺疾病住院的男性住院患者进行超声筛查显示出较高的AAA患病率。新筛查到的AAA比例适中，对下肢动脉的额外筛查产生了一些相关的动脉瘤，提示可能进行干预。