Medical Services

Aortic Dissection: A Critical Cardiovascular Emergency

Aortic dissection is a severe and maybe fatal disorder in which blood flows between the layers of the artery wall after the inner layer of the aorta tears. If not treated right once, the condition weakens the aorta and could cause death, extreme organ damage, or rupture.
Risk Factors and Causes
Chronic high blood pressure weakens the aorta walls, so aortic dissection sometimes follows from this. Other risk factors include smoking, trauma, ageing, bicuspid aortic valve, Marfan or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and atherosclerosis. It is more frequent in men over 60 but, because of genetic inclination, can strike younger people.
Usually described as "tearing" or "ripping," the main symptom is a sudden, acute chest or backache. Other complaints may include fainting, dyspnoea, a weak pulse in one arm, vertigo, paralysis, or stroke-like symptoms in the event of compromised blood flow to the brain.
Treatment and prevention
Critical emergency care can call for endovascular stent grafting, open-heart surgery, or blood pressure control. Long-term management calls for lifestyle adjustments to lower further cardiovascular risks, routine imaging, and control of hypertension. Early identification and quick intervention greatly raise survival rates.