Aortic dissection in a 19  year old male without risk factors

Thoracic aortic dissection (TAD) is a fatal and rare disease that affects 0.003% of the population [1]. Early diagnosis is critical because there is 1 –2% mortality per hour after symptom onset in those in whom the problem goes unrecognized [2]. The presentation of TAD is usually chest and or back pain [3]. However, signs and symptoms associated with TAD can be variable, potentially complicating the diagnosis of this rare and deadly disease [4,5 ]. The aortic dissection detection risk score (ADD-RS) with D-dimer (ADvISED trials [6]) has recently been proposed as a decision rule to help guide the workup of TAD in low risk patients (Table 1).
Source: The American Journal of Emergency Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: Case Report Source Type: research