Age-related morphological changes of the aorta, including dilatation and elongation, have been reported. However, rotation has not been fully investigated. We focused on the rotation of the ascending aorta and investigated its relationship with tortuosity. One hundred and two consecutive patients who underwent computed tomography coronary angiography were studied. The angle at which the en face view of the volume-rendered image of the right coronary aortic sinus (RCS) was obtained without foreshortening was defined as the rotation index. It was defined as zero if the RCS was squarely visible in the frontal view, positive if it rotated clockwise toward the left anterior oblique (LAO) direction, and negative if it rotated counter-clockwise toward the right anterior oblique (RAO) direction. The tortuosity was evaluated by measuring the biplane tilt angles formed between the ascending aorta and the horizontal line. The mean rotation index, posterior tilt angle viewed from the RAO direction (αRAO ), and anterior tilt angle viewed from the LAO direction (αLAO ) were 4.8 ± 16.3, 60.7 ± 7.0°, and 63.6 ± 9.0°, respectively. Although no correlation was observed between the rotation index and the αLAO (β = -0.0761, P = 0.1651), there was a significant negative correlation between the rotation index and αRAO (β = -0.1810, P < 0.0001). In multivariate regression analysis, the rotation index was an independent predictor of the αRAO (β = -0.1274, P = 0.0008). Clockwise rotation of the proximal ascending aorta exacerbates the tortuosity by tilting the aorta toward the posterior direction.
Keywords: ascending aorta; elongation; rotation; torsion; tortuosity.
© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.