Stanford - A Aortic Dissection Presenting as a Triple Mimic and Role of Point of Care Ultrasound in Deciphering It

Abstract

Aortic dissection (AD) is a great imitator, and its diagnosis is quite challenging due to its varied presentations and unreliable clinical findings. Based on the literature search we found, this is the first case report of Stanford-A/DeBakey Type 1 AD reported as a triple mimic, namely stroke, acute limb ischemia, and pericarditis. Here, we describe the case of a 46-year-old male who presented to our emergency department with features suggestive of acute pericarditis, cerebrovascular accident, acute limb ischemia, which could have been attributed to athero-thrombo-embolic disease and AD could have been possibly missed. However, point-of-care ultrasound helped us in the diagnosis of this highly lethal condition.

Keywords: Acute limb ischemia; Pericarditis; Point of care ultrasound; aortic dissection; cerebrovascular accident.