ABSTRACT
CT is the preferred imaging modality for a wide range of aortic pathology, including acute aortic syndromes (AAS), inflammatory aortic disease, as well as elective imaging in the context of suspected aortic enlargement, surgical or endovascular treatment planning, surveillance, and follow-up. Modern multidetector scanners allow scanning of the entire thoracic and abdominal aorta in one breath-hold with or without ECG synchronization of the thoracic segments. ECG synchronization is achieved with standard retrospective-gated or prospective-triggered acquisition techniques, and is important for indications focused on the aortic root and ascending aorta in order to reduce cardiac motion artefacts transmitted to the aortic root. CT imaging plays a critical role in the diagnosis and management of AAS. MDCT is highly diagnostic for the identification of AAS.
