Aortic dissection laboratory tests

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Electrolyte and Biomarker Studies

 * Routine blood work is usually not helpful, although one can see evidence of hemolysis from the blood in the false leumen. There has been one report using a smooth muscle myosin heavy chain immunoassay to help diagnose aortic dissection.  They report that a level > 10 ng/ml within the first 12h is 90% sensitive and 97% specific.  This needs to be confirmed in other trials however.
 * The presence of an elevated CK MB may indicate the presence of concomitant MI (often an right coronary artery occlusion due to occlusion of the ostium of the RCA by the dissection).

Acknowledgements
The content on this page was first contributed by: David Feller-Kopman, MD and C. Michael Gibson M.S., M.D.