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Stanford Health Care

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA)

Abdominal aortic aneurysm: Overview

An abdominal aortic aneurysm is a stretched and bulging area of the aorta. The aorta is the large blood vessel that takes oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the rest of the body. This type of aneurysm is in the belly, where the aorta takes blood to the lower body. If an aneurysm gets too big, it can cause serious problems. A bulging aorta is weak and can burst, or rupture. This causes life-threatening bleeding.

If your doctor has determined that your aneurysm is small and not growing fast, it is safe to watch the aneurysm carefully and wait on surgery. If the aneurysm is larger, surgery may be the safest choice. In some cases, your doctor may be able to put in a type of graft, called a stent, to fix the aneurysm without doing major surgery.

Condition Spotlight

Image of vascular-endovascular-care-aaa-mk-1138-d.jpg
Early Detection and Life-Saving Techniques for Repair of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm
Arteries' Mere Millimeters a Mainstay Until Aneurysms Raise Risk of Lethal Rupture

Clinical Trials for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

Clinical trials are research studies that evaluate a new medical approach, device, drug, or other treatment. As a Stanford Health Care patient, you may have access to the latest, advanced clinical trials.

Open trials refer to studies currently accepting participants. Closed trials are not currently enrolling, but may open in the future.

Open Trials Closed Trials

Clinics for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm