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DISSECTING ANEURYSM OF THE AORTA
Author(s) -
HURLEY J. V.
Publication year - 1959
Publication title -
australasian annals of medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.596
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-5994
pISSN - 0571-9283
DOI - 10.1111/imj.1959.8.4.297
Subject(s) - aneurysm , aorta , dissection (medical) , aortic aneurysm , aortic dissection , abnormality , medicine , connective tissue , pathology , anatomy , radiology , surgery , psychiatry
Summary Comparison of the histological appearances of the aorta from 38 subjects of dissecting aneurysm and of a small series of aortas from control subjects revealed no characteristic histological abnormality accompanying aortic dissection. Alterations involving one or more elements of the media were present in a number of cases, but similar changes were seen in control subjects. In a substantial proportion of cases of dissecting aneurysm the aortic wall was of normal appearance. These histological findings are contrasted with the gross change in resistance to “splitting” forces demonstrable macroscopically in many cases of aortic dissection. It is postulated that the underlying medial defect predisposing to aortic dissection is a generalized and reversible one, involving fine collagen fibres and the intercellular substance of connective tissue. The clinical, macroscopic, histological and experimental aspects of the disease are discussed in relation to this hypothesis.