Aortic aneurysm
Adult

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Emergency Referrals

Useful Management Information

Refer to HealthPathways or local guidelines
Advance health directive (where available)
AP and Transverse dimensions - Please note length of aneurysm is irrelevant
Atherosclerosis risk factor management (antihypertensive; diabetes, dyslipidaemia)
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment with the AusCVD risk calculator applies to primary prevention only and is intended to support early identification of cardiovascular risk in patients without established cardiovascular disease.
Calculation of CVD risk is not required and not applicable for patients with established cardiovascular disease, including (but not limited to):
- stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA)
- peripheral arterial disease (PAD)
- aneurysm
Where CVD risk assessment is undertaken for primary prevention:
- Low risk (<5%): encourage, support and advise a healthy lifestyle
- Intermediate risk (5% to <10%): encourage lifestyle measures and consider blood pressure and lipid lowering therapy, depending on clinical context
It is strongly recommended that people who smoke stop before surgery as it increases the complications of surgery and is associated with delayed skin healing. Please consider directing your patient to a smoking cessation program.
Where serial/follow-up >3.5cm-5cm, 6-monthly surveillance USS is performed.
Where serial/follow-up <3.5cm, 12-monthly surveillance USS is performed.
Any increase of 1cm or more within a 12-month period is an indicator for early referral.
Driving should cease if AAA is >5.0cm or the patient is considered at risk of dissection or rupture - Ausroads Assessing fitness to drive

Minimum Referral Criteria

Does your patient meet the minimum referral criteria?

Category 1 (appointment within 30 calendar days)	Abdominal aortic aneurysm >5.0cm AP or transverse diameter measurement (increasing size, tenderness) Thoracic aneurysm >5.0cm AP or transverse diameter measure (increasing size, tenderness) Rapid AAA expansion (>1.0cm / year)
Category 2 (appointment within 90 calendar days)	Abdominal aortic aneurysm 4.0-5.0 cm - AP or transverse diameter measure Thoracic aneurysm 4.0-5.0cm - AP or transverse diameter measure
Category 3 (appointment within 365 calendar days)	Abdominal aortic aneurysm <4.0cm - AP or transverse diameter measure Thoracic aneurysm <4.0cm - AP or transverse diameter measure
If the patient does not meet the criteria for referral but the referring practitioner believes the patient requires specialist review, a clinical override may be requested: Please explain why (e.g. warning signs or symptoms, clinical modifiers, uncertain about diagnosis, etc.) Please note that your referral may not be accepted or may be redirected to another service.

Standard Referral Information

Reason for request

To establish a diagnosis
For treatment or intervention
For advice and management
For specialist to take over management
Reassurance for GP/second opinion
For a specified test/investigation the GP can't order, or the patient can't afford or access
Reassurance for the patient/family
For other reason (e.g. rapidly accelerating disease progression)
Clinical judgement indicates a referral for specialist review is necessary

Relevant clinical information about the condition

Presenting symptoms (evolution and duration)
Physical findings
Details of previous treatment (including systemic and topical medications prescribed) including the course and outcome of the treatment
All conservative options that have been pursued unsuccessfully prior to referral
Body mass index (BMI)
Details of any associated medical conditions which may affect the condition or its treatment (e.g. diabetes), noting these must be stable and controlled prior to referral
Any special care requirements where relevant (e.g tracheostomy in place, oxygen required)
Current medications and dosages
Drug allergies
Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs use

Patient's Demographic Details

Full name (including aliases)
Date and country of birth
Residential and postal address including whether patient resides at an aged care facility
Telephone contact number/s – home, mobile and alternative
Medicare number (where eligible)
Name of the parent or caregiver (if appropriate)
Name of delegate and contact details (Department of Corrective Services)
Preferred language and interpreter requirements
Identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Any special needs, access requirements and/or disability relevant to the referral

Referring Practitioner Details

Full name
Full address
Contact details – telephone, fax, email
Provider number
Date of referral
Signature
Nominated general practitioner’s details (if known), if the nominated general practitioner is different from the referring practitioner

Other relevant information

Willingness to have surgery (where surgery is a likely intervention)
Choice to be treated as a public or private patient
Compensable status (e.g. DVA, Work Cover, Motor Vehicle Insurance, etc.)

Essential Referral Information

Genetic factors and collagen disorder
Significant co-morbidities
Cardiovascular assessment
Current aneurysm size, AP or transverse diameter measurement last 6 months (if known)
Vascular risk factors
U&E
FBC & coags
BSL
Lipid profile
Abdominal USS

If a specific test result cannot be obtained due to access, financial, religious, cultural or consent reasons a clinical override may be requested. This reason must be clearly articulated in the body of the referral.

Additional Referral Information

Fine slice CT (if available)
CXR Report

Send Referrals To

Smart Referrals

Preferred Method
About Smart Referrals

Secure Web Transfer

Medical Objects Account: GQ42150009Z

HealthLink EDI: Qldgchsd

Internal Referrals

Vascular Surgery qhRefer

Fax

(07) 5687 4497

Post

Booking and Referral Centre
Gold Coast University Hospital
1 Hospital Boulevard
Southport QLD 4215

Enquiries

1300 559 083

Related HealthPathways

No directly related pathways found

HealthPathways home page

Service Availability

Dr Venu Bhamidi

Medical Director Vascular Surgery

Facilities

Gold Coast University Hospital

Robina Hospital

If you would like to send a named referral, please address it to the specialist listed above, who will allocate a suitably qualified specialist to see the patient. Alternatively, you can view a full list of our specialists.

Aortic aneurysmAdult