[Dissecting aortic aneurysm in siblings without Marfan's syndrome].

The occurrence of dissecting aortic aneurysm in 2 or more family members is rare. We reported two cases of dissecting aortic aneurysm in one family. Case 1. Brother. A 49-year-old male, was diagnosed to have acute dissecting aortic aneurysm (DeBakey type I) with mild aortic regurgitation. He was operated on by valvuloplasty and closure of the false lumen, and is alive and well at the present time. Case 2. Sister. A 60-year-old female, was diagnosed to have chronic dissecting aortic aneurysm (DeBakey type II). She underwent replacement of the ascending aorta with a Dacron graft. She is alive and well. Neither of these 2 patients nor other family member had any features of the Marfan's syndrome. Histological examination of 2 cases showed the degeneration of smooth muscle in the media. Among their family, mother died of unidentified heart disease.