Where do aortic injuries most commonly occur in the setting of blunt trauma?
Most injuries seen by radiologists occur at the aortic isthmus, which is just distal to the takeoff of the left subclavian artery. Most authorities believe this is due to asymmetric aortic fixation at this location, leading to shear stress. Radiologists less commonly see injuries to the ascending aorta because many patients with this type of injury die before reaching the hospital.