This finding is reported by Amy Reed, MD, assistant professor of surgery at UC, in the April edition of the Journal of Vascular Surgery.
The aorta is the main artery that carries oxygenated blood from the heart to be distributed throughout the body. A severe blunt thoracic injury, often the result of the sudden "deceleration" experienced in an auto accident, can jerk the aorta forward and back again, causing it to crack.
"The real problem is that most people die from blunt thoracic aortic trauma before ever reaching a hospital, and about 50 percent of those who do make it will die within a few hours," explains Dr. Reed, a vascular surgeon.
"Unfortunately even if the aorta is repaired immediately," she adds, "the patient almost always has other, equally life-threatening injuries that jeopardize their overall recovery and survival."
Dr. Reed and her team wanted to know if there was a later time frame in which blunt thoracic aortic trauma injuries could be safely repaired, allowing surgeons to first address related--and often fatal--injuries.
If all three layers of the aorta rupture immediately, Dr. Reed explains, the patient dies almost instantly from blood loss. If the outer layer remains intact, however, a weakened area called a pseudoaneurysm can form--which temporarily contains the tear in the vessel, but can burst later.
"This gives us a window of opportunity to get blood pressure under control and prevent further damage to the body," Dr. Reed explains. "Once the patient is stabilized, we can thoroughly assess the patient's condition and begin addressing associated--and often just as life-threatening--injuries."
"Creating this type of carefully c
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Contact: Amanda Harper
amanda.harper@uc.edu
513-558-4657
University of Cincinnati
13-Apr-2006