| Specialty: | Vascular surgery, cardiology, emergency medicine |
| Symptoms: | Abdominal pain, flank pain, or back pain |
| Complications: | Shock, anemia |
| Onset: | Acute |
| Causes: | Ruptured aortic aneurysm, trauma |
| Treatment: | Surgical repair |
| Prognosis: | Poor |
| Deaths: | Up to 90% of cases |
Aortic rupture is the rupture or breakage of the aorta, the largest artery in the body. Aortic rupture is a rare, extremely dangerous condition. The most common cause is an abdominal aortic aneurysm that has ruptured spontaneously. Aortic rupture is distinct from aortic dissection, which is a tear through the inner wall of the aorta that can block the flow of blood through the aorta to the heart or abdominal organs.
An aortic rupture can be classified according to its cause into one of the following main types:
An aortic rupture is a catastrophic medical emergency. People rarely survive such an injury. Mortality from aortic rupture is up to 90%. 65–75% of patients die before they arrive at hospital and up to 90% die before they reach the operating room.[2]