ABSTRACT
As Parmley first reported in 1958, 85% of thoracic aortic injuries in the setting of blunt trauma
result in death at the scene of the accident. For the remaining 15% of patients arriving to a
medical facility, subsequent mortality rates are 1% per hour for the first 48 hours in patients not
undergoing surgical intervention with most of the deaths occurring within the first week (1).
In a more recent review, aortic injury accounted for the second most common cause of death in
the setting of blunt trauma, second only to head injury (2). The worldwide magnitude of this
problem is evident when one considers that in North America alone, approximately 7500 to
8000 cases of blunt aortic injury occur each year (3,4). Efficient patient transport, early
diagnosis, and appropriate intervention are paramount.
