A pseudoaneurysm, or pseudoaneurysm of the vessels, occurs when a blood vessel wall is injured and the leaking blood collects in the surrounding tissue. It is sometimes called a false aneurysm. In a true aneurysm, the artery or vessel weakens and bulges, sometimes forming a blood-filled sac.

What causes false aneurysm?

A false aneurysm may be the result of a prior surgery or trauma. Sometimes, a tear can occur on the inside layer of the vessel. As a result, blood fills in between the layers of the blood vessel wall creating a pseudoaneurysm.

Can a false aneurysm rupture?

Pseudoaneurysms result from traumatic arterial injury. With the increasing utilization of percutaneous arterial interventions, iatrogenic arterial injury has become the predominant cause of pseudoaneurysm formation. Rupture of the pseudoaneurysm comprises a vascular emergency.