Ascending Aortic Aneurysm:
The aorta is a large vessel that connects to the heart. Blood is pushed out of the heart and into
the aorta which delivers the oxygenated blood to the rest of the body. The wall of the aorta
expands and contracts each time the heart beats. This can create weakening of the aortic wall
and loss of elasticity, enlargement (dilation) can occur.
The aorta is broken down into three sections:
Ascending Aorta­ Part of
the aorta that starts at the aortic
valve and extends to the "arch".
The arch is the curved portion of
the aorta where the blood vessels
that supply blood to the brain and
arms
Aortic Arch- The part of
the aorta that bends between the
ascending and descending aorta. It
leaves the heart and ascends, then
descends back to create the arch.
Descending Aorta ­ Portion of the aorta that starts to go down to the toes and extends
down into the belly past the belly button.
Signs & Symptoms:
Upper back pain
Risk Factors:
Shortness of breath
Uncontrolled Blood Pressure (#1 cause)


Family history
Chest pain
Marfan's Syndrome,
Back pain
High Cholesterol
Rapid heart rate
Coronary Artery Disease
Tearing pain
Bicuspid Aortic Valve
Infections
*Sometimes there are no
Ehlers Danlos
symptoms and this disease of the
Smoking
aorta are found incidentally*
Peripheral vascular disease.
Blood pressure control is important in preventing the aneurysm from getting bigger. If the
aneurysm grows too quickly there is a higher risk of the vessel tearing or rupturing.
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