Abstract

Aortic dissection represents the most common aortic emergency, affecting 3 to 4 per 100,000 people per year and is still associated with a high mortality. Twenty percent of the patients with aortic dissection die before reaching hospital and 30% die during hospital admission. Aortic dissections may be classified in 3 ways: according to their anatomical extent (the Stanford or DeBakey systems), according to the time from onset (acute or chronic), and according to the underlying pathology (the European Society of Cardiologists' system). Advances in endovascular technology have provided new treatment options. Hybrid endovascular and conventional open surgical repair represent the mainstay of treatment for acute type A dissection. Medical management remains the gold standard for acute and uncomplicated chronic type B dissection, though endovascular surgery offers exciting potential in the management of complicated type B dissection through sealing of the intimal entry tear.

Links

Publisher Full Text

Authors

Karthikesalingam A, Holt PJ, Hinchliffe RJ, Thompson MM, Loftus IM

Institution

St George's Vascular Institute, London SW17 0QT, UK.

Source

Vascular and endovascular surgery 44:3 2010 Apr pg 165-9

MeSH

Acute Disease
Aneurysm, Dissecting
Aortic Aneurysm
Cardiovascular Agents
Chronic Disease
Humans
Patient Selection
Predictive Value of Tests
Risk Assessment
Risk Factors
Severity of Illness Index
Treatment Outcome
Vascular Surgical Procedures

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Review

Language

eng

PubMed ID

20308170