'Fit and healthy' woman survives rare aortic tear

A "fit and healthy" woman from Devon who survived an "incredibly rare" aortic dissection has said she is determined to make the most of life.

Marie Anne August, of Newton Abbot, became ill during an exercise session. Aortic dissection is a life-threatening condition caused by a tear in the aorta, the body's largest artery, or bleeding within the aortic wall, according to the NHS.

The 45-year-old said it was really hard to diagnose: "I couldn't breathe and the pain was absolutely excruciating. It took me by surprise because I thought I was fit and healthy."

She says she felt "something ripping, it goes to the back of your chest up to the back of your neck, it felt like something bubbling".

Aortic dissection is most common in people aged 65-75, with 35 cases per 100,000 people per year in that age group.

Ms August went to A&E and had an ECG and blood tests, but was sent home without a diagnosis.

She explained to John Acres at Breakfast on Radio Devon: "It's very difficult for them to diagnose. Unless you have a CT scan, it's very difficult to know that you've got an aortic dissection."

She said the condition gave the same symptoms as a heart attack but death rates increased "hour by hour".

However, she said that "as time goes on, and I think it's an issue with aortic dissection, the pain minimises".

"I think because it's so rare people don't see it."

She added: "What saved my life was being so fit and healthy."

Her family told her that after being sent home, she still "didn't look right", she said, so she returned to A&E after two days and had a CT scan. She was then told she needed open heart surgery at Derriford Hospital.

She said many older people who have the condition sit "and do nothing" afterwards because "it's a life changing event".

"I'm not letting that happen to me," she said. "My gym's been really great helping me with cardiac rehab."

However, she can no longer run, ski, water ski or do front crawl.

"It's such a change - to someone who is quite fit and active - to all the things I can't do.

"I have to get my head around how I live my life now."

She is doing an exercise stress test in London to find out how she responds to different exercises.

"I have to find my way on my own. I'm determined to get back some sort of fitness," she said.

Aortic dissection is when the weakened wall of the aorta tears, causing blood to leak between the layers that make up the walls of your arteries. This can happen suddenly or slowly over time.

The symptoms of aortic dissection include:

• A sudden, severe pain across the chest, often felt in the back or between the shoulder blades
• Pain in the jaw, face, abdomen, back or lower extremities
• Feeling cold, clammy and sweaty
• Fainting and shortness of breath

If you experience any of these symptoms you should phone 999 immediately as aortic dissection is a medical emergency and needs urgent treatment.

Source: British Heart Foundation

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