PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Sarah Saunders
AU  - Dean Harmse
AU  - Mary Sheppard
TI  - Undiagnosed coarctation of the aorta as a cause of aortic dissection in the young
AID  - 10.1136/bcr.04.2009.1740
DP  - 2009 Jan 01
TA  - BMJ Case Reports
PG  - bcr0420091740
VI  - 2009
4099  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/2009/bcr.04.2009.1740.short
4100  - http://casereports.bmj.com/content/2009/bcr.04.2009.1740.full
AB  - A 35-year-old man presented to the Emergency Department with a history of severe acute central chest pain and simultaneous bilateral paralysis the legs with double incontinence. There was no significant past medical or family history. A CT scan showed a thoracic dissection of the aorta extending from the aortic root to the aortic bifurcation and in to the common iliac arteries. The patient was consented for an axillo-femoral bypass and was taken to theatre and operated on for 7 hours. The patient unfortunately died under anaesthesia. A hospital post-mortem was requested to identify the cause of the dissection. The patient’s heart was sent to a cardiac pathologist who identified an undiagnosed coarctation of the aorta. Genetic testing was negative for Marfan syndrome. As a result of the post-mortem, it was recommended that first degree relatives of the deceased undergo ultrasound examination of the cardiovascular system as appropriate to exclude coarctation of the aorta.