Aortic Dissection

Aortic Dissection is when the aorta has a tear in the wall causing blood to leak between the layers of the wall and forcing the layers apart.

Some of the causes of aortic dissection is high blood pressure, many connective tissue disorders and trauma to the chest. Most people who suffer from aortic dissection are of the age between 50 to 70. Males are more likely to have this disorder than females.

Some different symptoms are sudden onset of chest pain. Some patients describe it as stabbing or tearing pain. Blood pressure changes and aortic insufficiency.

Some diagnostic test to diagnose aortic dissection can be a plain chest x-ray, CT, ECG, and MRI.

Treatment for aortic dissection is very important. Aortic dissection is a medical emergency and the risk of death is greatest in the first few hours after dissection begins. The choice of treatment depends on the location of the dissection. Sometimes surgery is needed and in other cases medical management is done.

If you would like to learn more about aortic dissection you can visit these websites, www.aic.cuhe.edu.hic and myweb.lsbu.ac.uk.