title: Acute aortic dissection type A with acute coronary involvement: a novel classification.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Acute coronary involvement (ACI) due to acute aortic dissection (AAD) type A is potentially fatal. We examined selected patients with AAD type A, which had evolved over 14 years, and acute coronary involvement. The purpose of this study was to determine the characteristics of patients with ACI due to AAD type A.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 1997 and 2011, we recruited 20 patients (14.1%) with ACI (14 men, 6 women; mean age: 51.8 ± 11.8 years; age range: 35-79 years) from 142 patients who had undergone surgical repair of AAD type A.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We propose a novel 4-category classification scheme based on the surgical pathological findings. The right coronary artery was involved in 15 patients, and the left was involved in 5 patients. Fourteen patients had preoperative myocardial ischemia. In the other 6 patients, acute coronary involvement was found intraoperatively. Patients with ACI were significantly younger than those without ACI (51.8 ± 11.8 vs. 61.0 ± 11.8; p = 0.001), a lower prevalence of intramural hematoma (5.0% vs. 32.8%; p = 0.011), a higher aortic regurgitation rate (95.0% vs. 53.5%; p = 0.001). Patients presenting with ACI had an in-hospital mortality rate of 20.0% (4/20), while those without ACI had an in-hospital mortality rate of 19.7% (24/122).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acute coronary involvement due to AAD type A is not always associated with coronary malperfusion. Patients with ACI were much younger, had a higher aortic regurgitation rate, and, less commonly, had intramural hematoma. This new classification scheme would make it more convenient for surgeons to decide on treatment options for this special cohort.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung Taiwan. Electronic address: yfchen@cc.kmu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Ying-Fu
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Tsu-Ming
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Chien
authors.forename: Cai-Pei
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Kuo-Jung
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Wei-Yu
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Chih-Wei
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Jiann-Woei
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Chong-Chao
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.forename: Huai-Min
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chaw-Chi
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: Chee-Siong
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Ching-Cheng
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001014:Aortic Aneurysm / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies
keywords: Acute aortic dissection; Aortic and vascular disease; CV surgery; Coronary involvement; Coronary malperfusion