Clinical Practice and Cases in Emergency Medicine

Introduction: Abdominal pain is a common complaint seen in the emergency department (ED). We report a case of celiac artery aneurysm (CAA) in a male patient presenting with abdominal pain to the ED on two separate occasions, approximately 24 hours apart.

Case Report: On the initial visit the patient was discharged with undifferentiated abdominal pain after computed tomography imaging and laboratory investigations. On the repeat visit he was found to have a rapidly expanding CAA with rupture. He became unstable requiring intubation, blood transfusions, and emergent transfer to a tertiary care center for surgical management where, unfortunately, he died hours after failed operative management.

Conclusion: Although rare, abdominal pain caused by CAAs can rapidly progress to rupture and have a high mortality.