Anuloaortic ectasia: angiographic, hemodynamic and clinical comparison with aortic valve insufficiency.

Thirty-five patients with angiographically diagnosed anuloaortic ectasia were compared with 18 patients with isolated aortic valve insufficiency to study differences between the presentation, hemodynamic or angiographic findings and clinical course in the two groups. The maximal aortic root diameter in anuloaortic ectasia was 7.6 +/- 2.4 cm (mean +/- 1 standard deviation) versus 4.2 +/- 0.6 in aortic insufficiency. Dissection was a common complication of anuloaortic ectasia (44 percent) but was not seen in aortic insufficiency. Neither the size nor the configuration of the aortic aneurysm was a reliable predictor of dissection. Despite surgical therapy, patients with anuloaortic ectasia have a worse prognosis than those with aortic valve insufficiency.