Useful CT findings for predicting the progression of aortic intramural hematoma to overt aortic dissection

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to assess useful CT findings for pred icting the progression of aortic intramural hematoma to aortic dissection. Method: We analyzed the CT findings of 29 patients with aortic intramural h ematoma with regard to the following: involved site, maximum thickness of h ematoma, presence or absence of compression of true lumen, and pericardial and pleural effusion. CT findings were compared with those of the patients who progressed to aortic dissection (Group I) and those who did not (Group II). Each CT finding was evaluated with independent t test and Mann-Whitney U test (p < 0.05). Results: Seven of 8 cases of Type A aortic intramural hematoma and 3 of 21 cases of Type B aortic intramural hematoma progressed to aortic dissection. The type of aortic intramural hematoma, maximum thickness of hematoma, com pression of true lumen, and pericardial or pleural effusion were significan tly different in Groups I and II, Conclusion: Type A aortic intramural hematoma, maximum thickness of hematom a, compression of true lumen, and pericardial or pleural effusion are the u seful CT findings for predicting the progression of aortic intramural hemat oma to aortic dissection.