[Aortic elongation: merely mimicked in increased thoracic kyphosis? radiologic-pathologic correlation]

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Radiology
• Anatomy

Background:

• Radiological assessment of thoracic aortic elongation is common.
• The accuracy of this assessment in reflecting true anatomical changes is debated.
• Increased thoracic kyphosis can alter thoracic dimensions, potentially mimicking aortic elongation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if radiological signs of thoracic aortic elongation correlate with actual anatomical aortic length.
• To differentiate true aortic lengthening from changes caused by thoracic kyphosis.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from 50 autopsies (mean age 65.1 years).
• Measured anatomical aortic length and body length to calculate relative aortic length.
• Assessed radiological mediastinal width and used a semiquantitative scoring system for aortic elongation on in vivo radiographs.
• Measured the angle of kyphosis on standardized lateral radiographs.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant correlation was found between relative aortic length and both radiological mediastinal width (p < 0.001) and the aortic elongation scoring system (p < 0.001).
• Conversely, no significant correlation was observed between relative aortic length and radiological mediastinal width (p = 0.47) or the scoring system (p = 0.56) when considering kyphosis.
• This indicates radiological findings align with anatomical measurements.

Conclusions:

• Radiological diagnosis of aortic elongation accurately reflects true aortic lengthening.
• The study validates the use of imaging techniques for assessing aortic length changes.
• Findings suggest that increased thoracic kyphosis does not confound the radiological assessment of aortic elongation.