Zeitschrift für Kardiologie
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Aortic dissection with no entry or false lumen flow was recently identified as intramural hemorrhage of the aortic wall (IMH). Analysis of the literature revealed 209 cases of in vivo diagnosed IMH reflecting 17% of all dissections, whereas in postmortem studies this condition is found in 4-13%. Transesophageal echocardiography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and aortography (to rule out dissection) have been applied for diagnosing IMH in 57, 49, 43 and 38% of the cases, respectively. ⋯ With surgical repair, mortality of type A IMH is lowered to 18% compared to 60% with medical treatment (p < 0.01). In contrast, with 8% mortality associated with medical treatment, prognosis of type B IMH is more favorable without surgical intervention, the latter associated with a 30-day mortality of 33% (p < 0.05). Thus, IMH is a potential precursor of dissection and should be managed like dissection with undelayed surgical intervention in patients with type A IMH and with medical treatment in type B IMH.