| A Case of Descending Aortic Rupture
due to Blunt Chest Trauma |
(Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Nagano Red
Cross Hospital, Nagano, Japan)
| Masayuki Sakaguchi |
Naobumi Fujii |
Kazunori Nishimura |
| Nobuyuki Yanagiya |
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We report a case of rupture of the
thoracic descending aorta due to blunt chest trauma. An 18-year-old
man was transferred to our hospital after a car accident. He
was in a state of shock. The admission chest X-ray film demonstrated
mediastinal widening and blurring of the aortic arch. Chest and
abdominal helical CT scan showed left hemothorax, pseudoaneurysm,
and hematoma of the cervix, mediastinum, and retroperitoneal
space. We diagnosed rupture of the thoracic descending aorta
without other injuries. An emergency operation was performed
under partial cardiopulmonary bypass with systemic heparinization.
The descending aorta had completely lost its continuity. Graft
replacement was performed with a collagen-sealed woven Dacron
graft. The postoperative course was uneventful. We suggest that
high awareness and a systematic approach are needed to diagnose
traumatic aortic rupture, and that enhanced helical CT scanning
is helpful for diagnosis and management strategy.
Jpn. J. Cardiovasc. Surg. 30: 89-91 (2001) |
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