Leriche Syndrome Visualized by 3-Dimensional Multislice Computed Tomography Angiography

Rapid detection of aortic occlusion with emergency ultrasonography

The differential diagnosis of aortic emergencies includes abdominal aortic aneurysms and aortic dissection. Aortic occlusion is another rare yet deadly vascular emergency to be wary of. For acute occlusions, definitive management by embolectomy or aortofemoral bypass must be performed promptly. When suspected because of the history and physical examination results, bedside ultrasonography rapidly confirms the diagnosis. We describe 2 very different cases of aortic occlusion both initially detected with bedside ultrasonography in our emergency department.

A vascular cause of painful lumbar transverse syndrome

BACKGROUND

Despite typical signs of Leriche syndrome, this patient was misdiagnosed with disk prolapse. Vascular insufficiency, such as aortic occlusion, may underlie a motor-sensory deficit in the lower extremities.

METHOD

Case report.

FINDINGS

A 67-year-old woman was admitted for cramping pain in the lumbar spine, hips, and legs; diffuse weakness and sensory disturbances of both legs for weeks; and a cold feeling and livid colorization of the legs. Her complaints were attributed to a disk prolapse L5/S1, for which she underwent immediate laminectomy. Postoperatively, symptoms and signs were aggravated, abdominal pain developed, and C-reactive protein and creatinine were elevated. On the fourth postoperative day, femoral pulses were no longer palpable, anuria developed, and computed tomographry angiography showed occlusion of the abdominal aorta distal to the superior mesenteric artery and absent kidney perfusion. The patient died one day later. Postmortem review showed a visible intra-aortic mass on the previous lumbar magnetic resonance image.

CONCLUSIONS

The differential diagnosis of painful lumbar transverse syndrome should include vascular disease. Misinterpretation of a Leriche syndrome as a disk prolapse has not been reported.

Notch and Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Phenotype

The Notch signaling pathway is critical for cell fate determination during embryonic development, including many aspects of vascular development. An emerging paradigm suggests that the Notch gene regulatory network is often recapitulated in the context of phenotypic modulation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC), vascular remodeling, and repair in adult vascular disease following injury. Notch ligand receptor interactions lead to cleavage of receptor, translocation of the intracellular receptor (Notch IC), activation of transcriptional CBF-1/RBP-Jκ–dependent and –independent pathways, and transduction of downstream Notch target gene expression. Hereditary mutations of Notch components are associated with congenital defects of the cardiovascular system in humans such as Alagille syndrome and cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL). Recent loss- or gain-of-function studies have provided insight into novel Notch-mediated CBF-1/RBP-Jκ–dependent and –independent signaling and cross-regulation to other molecules that may play a critical role in VSMC phenotypic switching. Notch receptors are critical for controlling VSMC differentiation and dictating the phenotypic response following vascular injury through interaction with a triad of transcription factors that act synergistically to regulate VSMC differentiation. This review focuses on the role of Notch receptor ligand interactions in dictating VSMC behavior and phenotype and presents recent findings on the molecular interactions between the Notch components and VSMC-specific genes to further understand the function of Notch signaling in vascular tissue and disease.

Abnormal collateral arterial systems in Takayasu's arteritis and Leriche's syndrome evaluated by whole body acquisition using multislice computed tomography

Takayasu's arteritis causes various arterial changes, including wall thickening, occlusion, aneurysm, and calcification. Similarly, Leriche's syndrome causes occlusion of the abdominal aorta or iliac arteries accompanied by ischemic symptoms of the distal lower extremities. Both diseases are potentially associated with the development of unexpected collateral arteries throughout the body. We evaluated whole body arteries in subjects with Takayasu's arteritis and Leriche's syndrome using 16-slice multislice CT and concluded that it was a useful tool to detect unexpected collateral arterial systems in Takayasu's arteritis or Leriche's syndrome in a non-invasive fashion.