A 3D Characterization of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Geometry Before Endovascular Repair

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a pathology characterized by the dilation of the infrarenal aorta. To minimize the risk of rupture, patients are usually treated when diameters rise beyond a fixed threshold. The objective of this study was to compare two methods to characterize the geometry of the AAA of patients chosen for endovascular repair from the Fundacion Favaloro in the year 2021. Measurements for diameter, length and angle were obtained in different regions of the AAA for 28 patients through both a 'traditional' method and an 'assisted' one. The first method uses axial planes while the second one is based on a three-dimensional segmentation of the lumen, the extraction of its central line and the measurement over orthogonal planes in a semiautomatic way. Measurements resulted similar between the two methods, except for proximal thrombus diameter (p < 0.001), proximal length (p < 0.05) and distal sealing lengths (p < 0.05). The traditional method is faster than the assisted one but might be less accurate in complex anatomies. In conclusion, AAAs shapes and sizes were quantified before endovascular repair by two methods that resulted in similar anatomy descriptors that might be used to evaluate AAA ruptures and endoleaks in a follow-up study.