Coupling between regional aortic pulse wave velocity and luminal diameters in patients with thoracic aortic aneurysm: initial results from the ACTA study

Background Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) is life-threatening and requires close follow-up to prevent aortic dissection and/or rupture. Aortic wall stiffness and luminal size are considered to be coupled. Regional aortic wall stiffness in patients with TAA is unknown. Evaluation of regional stiffness may supplement monitoring for prediction of progressive aortic dilatation. Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV), a marker of vascular stiffness, can be assessed regionally using in-plane two-directional velocityencoded (VE) MRI. The purpose of this study was to evaluate coupling between regional PWV and aortic luminal diameter in patients with TAA.