Diseases of the Aorta Flashcards
The normal aorta consists of what 6 segments?
Annulus
Sinus of Valsalva
Sinotubular junction
Ascending aorta
Arch
Descending thoracic aorta
The area from the annulus to the proximal ascending aorta is called the ____.
Aortic root
The ascending aorta terminates at the ____ artery and this is where the aortic arch begins.
Brachiocephalic
The ____ continues on to include the left common carotid, left subclavian and ligamentum arteriosum.
Aortic arch
Primary dilation occurs with:
Connective tissue disease
Marfan’s
Secondary dilation occurs with:
Volume overload, AI
Pressure overload, HTN
Post stenotic dilation, AS
Surgery is necessary at an aorta size of ____-____.
5.0 - 5.5 cm
____ is an inherited connective tissue disease.
Marfan syndrome
3 things often associated with Marfan syndrome:
Dilated aorta
Aortic dissection (Type A)
MVP
Elongated fingers and arm bones are findings with ____.
Marfan syndrome
A ____ aneurysm looks like a “windsock” structure in the right atrium
Sinus of valsalva
The aortic wall is made up of three layers of tissue:
Intima
Media
Adventitia
An aortic dissection begins with a tear in the ____ layer of the aortic wall
Intima/inner
The most commonly reported symptom of acute aortic dissection is ____.
Sudden severe, constant chest and/or upper back pain, sometimes described as “ripping” or “tearing” or “stabbing.”
The pain associated with acute aortic dissection may be ____, moving from one place to another, according to the direction and extent of the dissection.
Migratory
Severe ____ is a grave prognostic indicator of acute aortic dissection
Hypotension
Ai is present in 50-75% of ascending aorta ____.
Dissections
____ occurs in 1-2% of dissections when the coronary arteries are involved.
MI
____ is any dissection which involves the aorta proximal to the origin of the left subclavian artery, regardless of distal extent.
Stanford type A
____ or ____ involves only the descending aorta.
Stanford type B or DeBakey Type III
____ can occur throughout the whole aorta.
DeBakey Type I or Stanford Type A
____ occurs in the ascending aorta only.
DeBakey Type II
Only 4 - 5 cm of the ____ and ____ can be seen on TTE.
Ascending aorta and some of the arch
____ is the gold standard for dissection diagnosis and may be used in place of using a TEE.
CT
If the ascending aorta is involved then you will usually have some aortic ____.
Dilation
The Aortic Valve is in the ____ lumen.
True
Which lumen is smaller: the true lumen or the false lumen?
True
The ____ lumen is usually filled with swirling echoes, representing stasis of blood.
False
The true lumen will have what when using doppler and be one color?
Systole and diastole
The ____ lumen will not have systole and diastole and will be a mix of red and blue when using color.
False
The dissected area needs to be replaced with a ____.
Graft
Atherosclerosis, aka, ____ of the aorta is frequently encountered during TEE.
Plaque
Where is plaque most often found?
In the descending aorta and the arch
Problems occur when there is ____ mm of protrusion into the lumen
4 mm
What is a aortic pseudoaneurysm?
A contained rupture of the aorta
The etiology for an aortic pseudoaneurysm is often ____.
Infection
Aortic trauma is aortic dissection caused by ____.
The aorta being torn away from the heart
____ is an inflammatory disease of the aorta and its proximal branches.
Takayasu Arteritis
Takayasu Arteritis is marked irregular ____ thickening and accumulation of inflammatory tissue in the proximal aorta and ostia of major branches including the coronaries.
Intimal
What population is Takayasu Arteritis typically found in?
Children and women under age 30 who are of African or Asian descent
