Popliteal Artery Aneurysms

A popliteal artery aneurysm is defined as a dilation of the popliteal artery greater than 20 mm, or greater than 50% at diameter of the native artery. Popliteal artery aneurysms are rare, but are most common in the lower extremities. These aneurysms have a high risk of ischemic complications and amputations even in unoperated patients. We describe the case of a 54-year-old man, hypertensive, with a large popliteal artery aneurysm. Doppler ultrasound and CT angiography of the lower limbs showed a 100 × 80 mm aneurysm of the popliteal artery. This aneurysm is responsible for venous compression with edema of the tissues under the skin. The patient was treated and a flattening of the aneurysm associated with bypass by the inverted right internal saphenous vein taken from the ipsilateral leg was performed. The patient was discharged on the 6th day of the operation. The patient was seen again at the outpatient clinic for one month and in the 3rd month an arterial Doppler ultrasound of the lower limbs performed had shown patency of the venous graft and disappearance of the intermittent claudication.