Delayed Superficial Femoral Artery Pseudoaneurysm Following Penetrating Trauma in a Young Patient with Sonographic Findings

The most common causes of penetrating arterial injuries are stab and gunshot-related injuries. Any penetrating trauma to thevessel wall that causes damage to the arterial wall will result in a pseudoaneurysm. The time from initial injury to detection of thepseudoaneurysm has been reported to vary from hours to years, depending on the site of formation and clinical symptoms. Enlargingswelling, the presence of pulsatile mass, palpable thrill, edema, and paresthesia of the involved area can be present based on location.Ultrasonography (US) and color Doppler US have been the preferred initial imaging technique to evaluate the vascular structures,especially under emergency conditions. The detection of a turbulent flow that appears as a classic “yin‑yang” sign is a characteristicfeature of pseudoaneurysms on the color Doppler US. In addition, the identification of a “to and fro” spectral waveform in the neck isconsidered pathognomonic for a pseudoaneurysm. As per the literature, the color Doppler US demonstrated high sensitivity (94%)and specificity (97%) for the diagnosis of a pseudoaneurysm. Therefore, it is a noninvasive, inexpensive, easy, and very tolerable firstchoice method for the diagnosis of a pseudoaneurysm. Here, we report on a delayed posttraumatic distal superficial femoral arterypseudoaneurysm in a young patient with color Doppler US findings.