Morphologic Evaluation of Ductus Diverticulum Using Multi - Detector Computed Tomography: Comparison with Traumatic Pseudoaneurysm of the Aortic Isthmus

To evaluate morphologic variations at the aortic isthmus with particular attention to ductus diverticulum, a mimicker of traumatic pseudoaneurysm, and to describe differences using Computed Tomography (CT) images..
Patients and From December 2013 to December 2014, patients who underwent a chest CT examination after blunt trauma at our emergency department were included. Aortic isthmus morphologies were evaluated using multiplanar reconstruction (MPR) and maximum intensity projection (MIP) images as follows. Type I -concave contour, type II -convexity without a discrete bulge, or type III -a discrete focal bulge (defined as ductus diverticulum)..
After excluding 11 cases of traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the aortic isthmus, a total of 432 trauma patients (mean age = 47.1 ± 19.1 years, number of males = 318) were evaluated for aortic isthmus morphology, and classified as follows; type I (n = 240, 55.6%), type II (n = 157, 36.3%), and type III (n = 35, 8.1%). As compared with traumatic pseudoaneurysm (n = 11), ductus diverticulum had a smaller vertical diameter (5.5 ± 1.3 mm vs. 11.2 ± 2.7 mm, P Ductus diverticulum, a mimicker of traumatic pseudoaneurysm of the aortic isthmus, is a frequently observed anatomic variant during CT examinations. Familiarity with its CT imaging findings could avoid it being confused with traumatic pseudoaneurysm in blunt trauma patients..