Aorto-Esophageal Fistula Caused by Vascular Malformation: A Case Description and an Analysis of the Literature.

Abstract

Aorto-esophageal fistula (AEF) is a condition with an extremely high mortality rate that often causes massive gastrointestinal bleeding, commonly resulting from esophageal perforation due to foreign bodies or aortic aneurysmal malformations. This case report introduces an elderly male patient who experienced hematemesis for longer than 16 h without obvious cause. The patient did not receive relief from endoscopic compression hemostasis. Through computed tomography angiography (CTA), a tortuous and thickened vessel was found in the descending aorta of the patient, which entered the esophagus. The diagnosis was AEF caused by vascular malformation. which has not been previously documented in the literature.