A sinister cause of anterograde amnesia: painless aortic dissection

Aortic dissection is a frequently devastating diagnosis classically associated with severe chest pain.We present a case of painless aortic dissection with anterograde amnesia. An 84-year-old man was brought to the emergency department by ambulance, when his wife noted that he developed acute onset complete loss of short-term memory. Medical history was notable for a 4.5-cm fusiform thoracic aortic root aneurysm. On arrival,he denied pain or syncope.On examination, he was mildly hypotensive(110/59 mm Hg); and there were no murmurs, pulse deficits, or focal neurologic deficits. During his stay, he developed left flank pain. Chest radiography demonstrated subtle mediastinal widening and obscuration of the aortic knob compared with previous films. Computed tomography revealed an extensive intimal flap consistent with an aortic dissection involving the sinus of Valsalva and left renal artery. The patient subsequently developed acute onset chest pain after which he became unresponsive. Echocardiography demonstrated tamponade physiology.The family decided to transition to comfort care measures, and the patient died soon after.We identified 7 other cases in the literature of aortic dissection cases with presentations consistent with transient global amnesia,5 of which without neurologic deficits and 3 of which without pain. This case highlights the imperative of a thorough history and high index of suspicion for this catastrophic diagnosis in patients with transient global amnesia who otherwise might be expected to have an excellent prognosis and little need for diagnostic work-up.