[Aortic dissection].

Abstract

Most often revealed thanks to chest pain, acute aortic dissection must be suspected and diagnosed without losing anytime, because of their evolutive risks and their specific treatment in a specialised unit. Once the early management is over, survivers must be closely followed, specially for their blood pressure to be kept normal, and to screen for secondary complications that would require surgery. Owing to the improvement of early management and follow up, facilitated by the new non-invasive imaging techniques of the aorta, the severe prognosis of this disease has significantly improved.