Diagnostic Imaging in the Evaluation of Suspected Aortic Dissection -- Old Standards and New Directions

Acute aortic dissection is a life-threatening condition, and its prompt diagnosis remains essential for successful management. Although early mortality may be as high as 1 percent per hour1 among untreated patients, survival can be improved by the rapid institution of appropriate medical or surgical therapy (or both). The Stanford classification system2 divides aortic dissections anatomically into two types on the basis of location. A dissection in which there is involvement of the ascending aorta, regardless of the site of entry, is defined as type A (this includes De Bakey3 types I and II and is often described as a proximal . . .