OBJECTIVES To compare the clinical characteristics of aortic dissection in Hong Kong with the International Registry of Aortic Dissection, and to evaluate the sensitivity of the Accident and Emergency Department in diagnosing aortic dissection and its role in aortic dissection management. DESIGN Retrospective observational study. SETTING Regional public hospital, Hong Kong. PATIENTS Newly...

OBJECTIVES This study was designed to define the frequency and explanation of false negative diagnosis of aortic dissection by aortography and transesophageal echocardiography. BACKGROUND Aortography and transesophageal echocardiography have been widely utilized to diagnose aortic dissection. Previous reports have not fully addressed the reasons why these studies yield false negative results ...

Aortic dissection is often misdiagnosed, especially among young patients, and it is associated with a high mortality rate. We present here a case of fatal acute aortic dissection in a young man who was misdiagnosed with pericarditis. We reviewed the literature of acute aortic dissection in young people and we focused particularly on clinical presentations, outcomes and investigations of aortic ...

Acute aortic dissection may indeed be a rare complication of pregnancy, and the majority of aortic dissections usually occur during the third trimester of pregnancy. Most aortic dissections occur as a result of systemic hypertension or connective tissue disorders. Without any treatment, more than 50% of patients die within the initial 48 hours, and the 3-month mortality rate is as high as 90%. ...

Aortic dissection, which typically manifests as sudden tearing or migratory pain, is a well-known medical emergency. However, in 5% of aortic dissection patients, there is no pain. In these patients, the diagnosis depends on the development of neurologic complications. After analyzing the initial symptoms of a series of patients with aortic dissection, we found 4/211 (1.9%) patients suffered fr...

BACKGROUND Valve-sparing surgery including the replacement of the sinus of valsalvae were initially meant to be promising approaches in the treatment of acute type A aortic dissection. However, the long-term outcome after valve-sparing aortic root replacement in acute type A dissection is currently the subject of intense debate, and the evidence reported in the literature is sparse. Here we rep...

BACKGROUND Clinical criteria for aortic dissection are poorly defined. Thus, 35% of aortic dissections remain unsuspected in vivo, and 99% of suspected cases can be refuted. OBJECTIVE To identify independent predictors of acute aortic dissection and create a prediction model for facilitated estimation of the individual risk of dissection. METHODS Two hundred fifty patients with acute chest ...

Acute type B aortic dissection comprises approximately one-third of all aortic dissection cases. Although this catastrophic cardiovascular condition was first described in the medical literature over two centuries ago, data on the optimal diagnostic and treatment modalities for type B dissection was slow to evolve throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, even as newer diagnostic tec...

It remains unclear whether or not the infarcted brain caused by aortic dissection should be reperfused when an emergency operation is needed for aortic arch dissection. A 64-year-old woman presented with severe back pain and syncope with a sudden left hemiplegia. CT scan demonstrated an aortic dissection of the entire aorta, obstruction of the right common carotid artery by extended aortic diss...