ABSTRACT
Although emphasis has generally been to get the patient with such injuries to the operating room as soon as possible, it is probably much more important to diagnose and treat other life-threatening injuries first. If the patient’s systolic pressure is kept <120 mmHg, it is unlikely that a partially torn aorta will rupture prematurely. Surgery should be performed on such lesions only if uncontrolled bleeding is present or if the conditions for repair are optimal.
