Morphological analysis using geometric parameters for splenic aneurysms

Abstract

Background Considering the unique characteristics of splenic artery aneurysms, we hypothesized that hemodynamic forces could play an important role in splenic artery aneurysm formation and that splenic artery geometry should be correlated with aneurysm development. Methods Tortuosity of the splenic artery was evaluated three-dimensionally by calculating the curvature using software and the original modeling system. We selected 54 splenic artery aneurysm patients who had undergone thin-slice computed tomography imaging with contrast. We compared the splenic artery aneurysm group to non-vascular patients via propensity-score matching (35 patients in each group). The splenic artery length index, average curvature, and maximum curvature were analyzed. Results Splenic artery aneurysm patients tended to have a longer splenic artery and the curvature was more severe compared to the non-vascular control patients. The average curvature of splenic artery aneurysm patients was associated with the dilatation rate in female patients. Conclusion Females with a tortuous splenic artery may have an increased risk of aneurysm formation.