Spontaneous rupture of the external iliac artery in a patient with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome type IV

A report is presented of a patient who died of a spontaneous rupture of the external iliac artery. She had had a complicated abdominal hysterectomy two years before. Light microscopy disclosed the evidence of EDS type IV, which was proven afterwards by culturing skin fibroblasts from her youngest son. The trait was autosomal dominant.