Background: Trauma is responsible for about 30% of surgical admissions in Port Moresby. Vascular injuries are frequently missed due to inadequate assessment by primary health care workers and often present late with large aneurysms which are difficult to manage. The aim of this study was to identify the patterns of morbidity associated with traumatic false aneurysms complicating vascular injuries in Port Moresby General Hospital from January 1995 to July 1999. Methods: A surgical database with 11,004 records was used to identify patients with a diagnosis of false aneurysm. Charts of patients with gunshot wounds, knife wounds and compound fractures were also reviewed to identify further cases with vascular injury. Results: 51 patients were found to have had documented evidence of vascular injury requiring surgical repair within the study period. 21 patients with traumatic false aneurysm presented to Port Moresby General Hospital. 17 of the 21 patients were aged 11 to 40 years. There was only one female patient. Stab wounds (50%) were the commonest mode of injury followed by lacerations (23%) and fish bites (14%). The calf (42%), forearm (13%) and the head (13%) were the commonest sites involved. The time from insult to admission varied from 4 days to 11 years with the modal time being 14 days. Most patients presented with hard signs of false aneurysms (94%) and 81% of the patients were treated within five days. Ligation (67%) was the commonest operation, followed by excision (43%) and vascular repair (19%). There were no deaths or amputations in any of the patients with false aneurysms. Conclusion: False aneurysms are a not infrequent complication of vascular injuries. Greater awareness of the possibility of vascular injury is needed. Patients in Port Moresby often present after considerable delay. However, the diagnosis can be made clinically and the results of surgical exploration are good. Although colour Doppler ultrasound is a useful investigation it sometimes fails to identify the aneurysm because it requires blood flow to be present in the aneurysm.
Aneurysm, False - epidemiology ; Aneurysm, False - etiology ; Aneurysm, False - surgery ; Papua New Guinea - epidemiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Wounds and Injuries - complications ; Wounds and Injuries - epidemiology