Risk factors

Risk factors of AAA are similar to other cardiovascular diseases. Several modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors have been identified (1)

• age
  • a study of 4345 subjects reported that people aged 25-54 were significantly less likely to be diagnosed with an AAA than those aged over 75
  • the incidence of aneurysms increases significantly with each decade in
    • men starting at 50 years
    • in women at 60 to 70 years
• familial risk
  • a positive family history is associated with an increased risk of AAA
  • risk is four times as high among people with a family history of the disorder as among those without a family history
• sex
  • women are less likely to develop an AAA than in age matched men.
  • risk is four times as high among men as among women
• smoking
  • most important modifiable risk factor
  • aneurismal dilations are seven times more likely in smokers than in non smokers
  • is also associated with increased growth and rupture rate of AAA (1,2)

Other less prominent risk factors are:

• hypertension
• ethnicity
  • more prevalent amongst white population than among blacks, Asians and Hispanics
• an elevated cholesterol
• obesity
• pre-existing atherosclerotic occlusive disease (1,2)

Reduced risk of AAA is associated with the following:

• lifestyle factors - regular exercise, healthy diet (adequate intake of fruits, vegetables and nuts)
• diabetes mellitus (1,2)

Reference:

• (1) Metcalfe D, Holt PJ, Thompson MM. The management of abdominal aortic aneurysms. BMJ. 2011;342:d1384.
• (2) Kent KC. Clinical practice. Abdominal aortic aneurysms. N Engl J Med. 2014;371(22):2101-8