Diagnosis and treatment of aortic dissection. Literature review

Abstract

Aortic dissection represents a relatively rare but highly fatal condition that is due to a tear in the intimal layer of the aortic artery or bleeding within its wall, resulting in a separation of its layers. Several risk factors have been identifi ed and share the same as for other cardiovascular diseases such as age, high blood pressure, dyslipidemia and genetic disorders of connective tissue. It is very important that the clinician can make a timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment in patients aff ected by it; the type of treatment depends on the extent and location of the dissection. open surgical repair is usually the most used for those that involve the ascending aorta and the aortic arch, on the other hand, endovascular intervention is recommended for dissections of the descending aorta that are usually complicated. In this work, the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations and fi nally the management of aortic dissection will be reviewed.