The American journal of surgical pathology
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Am. J. Surg. Pathol. · Sep 2006
Surgical pathology of noninfectious ascending aortitis: a study of 45 cases with emphasis on an isolated variant.
Aortitis is emerging as an important cause of ascending aortic aneurysm in the elderly. Its features have not been described in a surgical population. ⋯ Aortitis primarily affected women. Patients with isolated aortitis and giant cell arteritis were generally older than 50 years and, by definition, those with Takayasu arteritis were younger. In patients with isolated aortitis, outcomes were generally good, despite the absence of anti-inflammatory therapy. Accordingly, a conservative approach may be warranted for managing this subset of patients with aortitis.