Newly diagnosed with 3.9cm ascending aorta

Posted by hercules @hercules, Oct 9 2:31pm

Hello everyone, I’ve recently discovered from a lung scan that my ascending aorta is dialated to 3.9cm. No one seems too excited about this but I am very worried. Two years ago I had an echo and the report at that time says my aortic root was 3.2cm and my ascending aorta measured 3.74 cm. My drs. Never even mentioned this to me in any of our conversations. Now I get this lung cancer screening ct scan done and it says as incidental finding my ascending aorta is dialated to 3.9cm. Does this mean it’s grown 1.6 mm in two years or could this be just from different measurement methods? Does anyone have an ascending aortic aneurysm that has been watched long term with no growth? I’m 52 years old, quit smoking 15 years ago. Healthy weight, normal cholesterol and normal BP. Walk 30 min every day for exercise and have a very decent diet. My mother has dilation of 4.1 cm but she is 75 and hers has been monitored for 3 years and stable. She is also healthy diet, exercising daily. My sister is 53 years old and hers was discovered last year at 4.3 cm. I think she has continued to smoke off an on all the way up til discovery and had a very stressful job and not a great diet, no exercise. She is now also being monitored for growth. Thanks in advance to anyone who will respond. I have made an appointment with my cardiologist to discuss everything but it’s not until late November and I’m just trying really hard to deal with the anxiety I feel from all this until then 🙁

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Aortic Aneurysms Support Group.

cabgreenbay | @cabgreenbay | Oct 26 3:06pm

My ascending aortic aneurysm is 4.0, age 69. My mother died of brain aneurysm, am I at greater risk of early rupture?

hercules | @hercules | Oct 26 8:44pm

In reply to @cabgreenbay "My ascending aortic aneurysm is 4.0, age 69. My mother died of brain aneurysm, am I..." + (show)

Hi there, I’m sorry you lost your mom to a brain aneurysm. From what I understand a 4.0 ascending aorta is not of particular concern for rupture based on size alone for immediate risk but it should be monitored at least annually for growth. I have read that sizes under 4.5 cm risk of rupture is pretty low at around 1%. Since my mom and sister both also have dialated ascending aortas I plan on asking my cardiologist about genetic testing to see if we have some familial condition that would put us more at risk for early rupture. My grandfather on my mother’s side also suffered from a ruptured brain aneurysm and died from it at age 65. He had a long history of smoking and drinking and had suffered a stroke that left him disabled many years before that however. Best thing to do is to bring your family history to your doctors attention and ask for genetic testing and keep monitoring the size of your aorta with periodic scans. Wishing you good health!

booklover71 | @booklover71 | Oct 27 10:51am

Though we are all different health wise and also have different family history, my Ascending Aorta was 4.3 two years ago. I was told to retest in two years by the Thoracic Aorta Aneurysm Surveillance team. I just went for my two year test and my Sinus of Valsalva Root was 4.0 cm and Ascending Aorta was 4.3 cm. They will continue to monitor for my Thoracic Aorta Aneurysm and I am to retest in three years with another ECG-Gated CTA of the chest. I went whew and breathed a sign of relief. No growth and I will continue at 73 to travel and walk every other day.

eunice18 | @eunice18 | Oct 27 5:20pm

Have been monitored for 56 years! Have been at 4.7-4.8 for at least the last 10! Next echocardiogram is next week so will let you if we are still monitoring, but my guess is yes!!

hercules | @hercules | Oct 27 7:45pm

In reply to @eunice18 "Have been monitored for 56 years! Have been at 4.7-4.8 for at least the last 10!..." + (show)

Wow! That is truly incredible. I am so happy that you have been stable long term and hope that remains the case! I have heard that a lot of times they do not progress and that a large number of patients that undergo long term surveillance never reach the size that warrants intervention. This gives me great hope as well as hearing actual experiences of others like you who have remained stable. Please do post an update if you can. Wishing you very good health!

hercules | @hercules | Oct 27 7:48pm

In reply to @booklover71 "Though we are all different health wise and also have different family history, my Ascending Aorta..." + (show)

Hello! That is really good news that yours remains stable at 4.3cm for the last couple years! Do you mind sharing how long you have known about yours and what size it was at discovery? I’m recently diagnosed and only 52 years old so I am just at the beginning of this lifelong surveillance period. While I feel anxious about not knowing what is to become of my situation I do suppose it’s better to know about a potential issue so I can keep an eye on it best I can. Thank you for sharing your experience and I wish you very good health!

booklover71 | @booklover71 | Oct 28 11:31am

In reply to @hercules "Hello! That is really good news that yours remains stable at 4.3cm for the last couple..." + (show)

Two years ago I went to the doctor because I had what I thought was a pulled muscle from lifting a suitcase off the carousel at the airport. (I did by the way) I had a heart murmur since childhood and the doctor decided to check it out. The echo cardiogram showed an issue which led to my first CT scan. It scared the dickens out of me. I found this and other threads and I started to calm down. The unknown always scares me more than facts. So many wonderful people have shared their experiences and information. There are times I overthink and start being concerned more than I should since my measurement is small in comparison to others. I follow my doctor's advice, watch my diet (enjoying an occasional glass of wine with dinner) and have cut my treadmill walk to 15 minutes at 2.0. One of the doctors on the "team" was my husband's surgeon for his second heart surgery so I felt comfortable calling the office. I spoke with a nurse who gave me a wealth of information. I purchased a medical bracelet and have my iPhone set so emergency personnel can see my meds etc. I only travel with family members. Yes, I still get nervous off and on, but I keep going. 146 days until my next cruise. I hope you will find the same comfort i found through these threads.

hercules | @hercules | Oct 28 3:33pm

In reply to @booklover71 "Two years ago I went to the doctor because I had what I thought was a..." + (show)

I think the medical alert bracelet is a really good idea. I have the same tendency to worry about the unknown… to the point it really interferes with my living at times. I’m working on it and yes these forums are a great support and source of information. I have told myself I will keep my story updated if and when I get new information in hopes it would be helpful to someone else. I hope others will do the same. Take care!

View More View Less

Please sign in or register to post a reply.