Introduction:
Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is a chronic vasculitis of large- and
medium-sized vessels that tends to affect women and the elderly. One
population study describes a two-fold higher incidence among women with
a mean age at the time of diagnosis of about 75
years1. The classic presentation of GCA is headache,
temporal artery sequelae, and elevated inflammatory markers. While there
is a known association between GCA and aortic dissection, no known
studies or case reports have described patients who presented with
acute-on-chronic thoracic aortic dissection. We describe a patient who
presented with thoracic aortic aneurysm with acute-on-chronic dissection
secondary to GCA underwent successful repair.