TRAUMATIC RUPTURE OF THE THORACIC AORTA - THE DIAGNOSTIC CHALLENGE

The traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta is a severe and lifethreat ening entity. It is therefore important to diagnose this lesion. Class ically, this is based on the detection of a widened superior mediastin um on chest X-ray. However, several factors Like supine position, obes ity, mediastinal haematoma, might bias the diagnosis. The authors pres ent four different clinical presentations of traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta and describe how the lesion was detected. Subsequently, they review the literature on the diagnostic approach of this severe lesion.