Major Changes in Approach to Blunt Thoracic Aortic Injuries

During the past 10 years, diagnosis by CT and management with endovascular repair have increased, and mortality has decreased.

Blunt thoracic aortic injury can be life threatening. In a study conducted by the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST), researchers compared diagnostic and management approaches and patient outcomes using data from two prospective observational multicenter studies conducted 10 years apart: one in 1997 (AAST1) and the other in 2007 (AAST2).

The AAST1 study included 274 patients from 50 centers who had been treated during 30 months, and the AAST2 study included 193 patients from 18 centers who had been treated during 26 months. With respect to diagnostic approach, use of computed tomography (CT) scanning increased significantly from AAST1 to AAST2 (from 35% to 93% of cases), whereas significant decreases occurred in use of aor…

Reviewing Author

John A. Marx, MD, FAAEM, FACEP