Prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysms in over 65-year-old men with inguinal hernias.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) in over 65-year-old men who have inguinal hernias and discuss if pre-operative selective screening of this population is appropriate.

Patients And Methods: A prospective study on 70 consecutive male patients with an age range of 65-88 years (mean, 74 years) who were referred to a single vascular consultant's out-patient clinic with an inguinal hernia were screened for the presence of an AAA with an ultrasound scan before hernia repair over a period of 3 years.

Results: Two patients were found to have an AAA measuring 3.8 cm and 6.0 cm giving an AAA prevalence of 3% (exact 95% confidence interval = 0-10%).

Conclusions: This study does not demonstrate an increased AAA prevalence in over 65-year-old male patients with inguinal hernias, scanned pre-operatively when compared to screening programmes. Selective screening of this cohort cannot be justified on this evidence.