Aortic Dissection
Happy March 29th to you.
I hope you had a good Easter break, if you got a break.
I guess things can get a bit crazy sometimes with all that sugar and public holiday such and such stuff that happens but it's time to get back on track, sane or not.
Today I'm posting about the Aortic Dissection. Don't worry folks, if you suddenly think this may happen to you just know that it probably isn't as easy to develop as reading a blog post. You are far more likely to develop such a thing if you have existing high blood pressure issues, heart conditions or diseases. Of course there are other things that can increase your risk too such as being in a car crash or heavy cocaine use but when you consider all these leading causes or increases to risk (and I mean really think about it), if you have these things going on for you then you are probably already worrying about all kinds of different OTHER issues you are at risk of developing anyway. I doubt this one is the most significant.
My curiosity with the Aortic Dissection goes back a couple of years. I had always heard that ongoing high blood pressure issues were always a cause for concern but I didn't actually know why. Although not the same, for me it was sort of like knowing vegetables were good for me when I was a child and then finding a bit more out about it a bit later. I knew somebody who spent their final hours experiencing an Aortic Dissection or should I say 'complete Aortic Dissection' as it was worded on their death certificate. I had never heard of it before and of course asked the Dr to repeat himself several times. In the late(... or rather early) hours of that morning the Dr wrote it down for me on a piece of paper. It held a little bit of mystery of it's own for a little while until I was able to comfortably look in to it a bit more. Although pretty uncommon, Aortic Dissections are highly lethal and are likely to lead to fatality if untreated within 24-48 hours. In some situations it is just untreatable due to the length, locations or complexity of the tear.
So.. lets start from the top....
Your heart does all the work... well not all the work in the body, but it gets your blood moving. Your Aorta is the main artery or arterial passage in the body. It stems right off the heart before ascending in an arch and then descending through your body. All your other arteries branch off from the Aorta, directly or indirectly.
An Aortic Dissection refers to the splitting (dissection) anywhere along the Aorta (main arterial passage) and not where it branches off. Although it refers to the Aorta, a tear can continue along the entire Aorta or main artery and even along any arteries that branch off (complete aortic dissection). When the artery is split or dissected, it is not always completely torn but rather the artery walls separate via a tear and the blood enters the wall of the aorta, disrupting the blood flow, which is painful and can additionally lead to other complications.
There are treatments to repair tears, depending on where they are located and how severe, and of course, if they are even identified at all. When it comes to Aortic Dissections, prevention is better than cure. High blood pressure treatments should be taken seriously by any patient, lifestyles should be improved and a patient needs to accept that they will possibly be medicated for the duration of the rest of their lives. A better way of life and following a Dr's recommendations are the real life savers for anyone who is at risk of this condition, among many other risks that are likely to be facing.
So yeh... happy March 29th. This year that's ok.
-Mez