Frank haematuria secondary to ruptured pseudoaneurysm of the inferior vesical artery: a case report and review of the literature

Pseudoaneurysm of a vesical artery is an extremely rare iatrogenic complication; however, it may cause fatal haematuria.

A 21-year-old Arab Jordanian male had multiple optical urethrotomies for an iatrogenic urethral stricture after he had rectal surgery for Hirschsprung’s disease at the age of 2 years. During one of his admissions to the Emergency Room (ER) with urinary retention, an attempt at suprapubic catheter insertion was complicated by massive bleeding at the insertion site of the catheter. Abdominal exploration showed a distended urinary bladder with clots and bleeding seen at the bladder neck that was controlled with multiple sutures. The patient rebled again two times; the first was controlled with cystoscopy and cautery for a pulsatile bleeder seen at the bladder neck. The second time, the patient required blood transfusion of three units of packed red blood cells. Angiography was performed, and a pseudoaneurysm at the base of the urinary bladder from the inferior vesical artery was diagnosed, which was controlled by embolization.

Pulsatile bladder haemorrhage following urological intervention is suggestive of pseudoaneurysm or arteriovesical fistula, and angiography with embolization is recommended.