Cardiac tamponade: An acute pericardial effusion can occur causing cardiac tamponade if the proximal portion of the ascending aortic dissection ruptures into the pericardium. In this situation ...

The fatal complication of an ascending aortic aneurysm is rupture and/or aortic dissection ... Echocardiography can visualized the proximal portion of the aorta, however not the aortic arch ...