EDUCATION IN HEART
General cardiology
Dilation of the thoracic aorta: medical and surgical management
Cardiovascular Surgery Unit, Bichat Hospital, APHP Paris, France
Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Patrick Nataf
MD, Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Bichat-Claude Bernard University Hospital, APHP, 46 Rue Henri Huchard, 75877 Paris, Cedex 18, France; natafp@wanadoo.fr
Keywords: aortic aneurysm; ascending aorta; dilation; thoracic aorta
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Dilation of the ascending aorta entails a high risk of dissection or aortic rupture in the absence of surgical treatment. Overall, it represents 50% of all thoracic aneurysms, but can be separated into two distinct entities, according to aetiology and surgical management: (1) the aortic root aneurysm, concerning the initial portion, the so called "aortic root", that includes the sinuses of Valsalva; and (2) the "supravalvular aortic aneurysms" above the sinuses of Valsalva up the brachiocephalic trunk (fig 1
). In contrast to the supravalvular aneurysm that can be treated by a simple supracoronary tube graft, the aortic root aneurysm involves the aortic valve which needs to be spared or replaced. Recent surgical advances have been developed for aortic root aneurysms, which are detailed in this report.
[in a new window] Figure 1 Normal ascending aorta: aortic root, sinotubular junction, and supravalvular aorta.
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INCIDENCE AND RISK FACTORS
Aortic aneurysms remain the 13th leading cause of mortality in western
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