Aortic dissection

Aortic dissection

Dissection of the descending part of the aorta (3), which starts from the left subclavian artery and extends to the abdominal aorta (4). The ascending aorta (1) and aortic arch (2) are not involved.
Classification and external resources
Specialty	Vascular surgery, cardiothoracic surgery
ICD-10	I71.0
ICD-9-CM	441.0
OMIM	607086
DiseasesDB	805
MedlinePlus	000181
eMedicine	emerg/28
Patient UK	Aortic dissection
GeneReviews	Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms and Aortic Dissections
[]

Aortic dissection occurs when a tear in the inside of the aorta causes blood to flow between the layers of the wall of the aorta, forcing the layers apart. In most cases this is associated with a sudden onset of severe chest or back pain, often described as "tearing" in character. Also, vomiting, sweating, and lightheadedness may occur. Other symptoms may result from decreased blood supply to other organs such as stroke or mesenteric ischemia. Aortic dissection can quickly lead to death as a result of not enough blood flow to the heart or rupture of the aorta.

Aortic dissection is more common in those with a history of high blood pressure, a number of connective tissue diseases that affect blood vessel wall strength such as Marfan syndrome, a bicuspid aortic valve, and previous heart surgery.Major trauma, smoking, cocaine use, pregnancy, a thoracic aortic aneurysm, inflammation of arteries, and abnormal lipid levels also increase the risk. The diagnosis is confirmed with medical imaging such as computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, or ultrasound. The two main types are Stanford type A which involves the first part of the aorta and type B which does not.