The cardiovascular condition that likely caused the sudden death of South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham on Saturday is a relatively rare — but deadly — tear of the body’s largest artery, and experts say high blood pressure is typically to blame.
An initial medical examiner’s report found that Graham, 71, died after his aorta, the main artery carrying blood from the heart to the rest of the body, suffered a rip known as an aortic dissection.
It is a life-threatening condition that tends to afflict men in their 50s, 60s and 70s, and it can quickly become deadly if a patient is not rushed into emergency surgery, said Jason Lee, chief of vascular surgery at Stanford Medicine. Symptoms include intense pain in one’s chest or back.
“It sounds as terrible as it is,” Lee said, adding that it is “relatively rare, but definitely dangerous and catastrophic.”
He said an aortic dissection is less common than a heart attack, but just as dangerous. It occurs when the aorta tears or its lining separates. When the aorta bursts, blood rushes through the tear, which often leads to sudden death. Short of that, a dissection can compromise major organs like the brain and liver, Lee said.
When younger patients are at risk of aortic dissection, they typically have a family history of congenital heart disease, Lee said. For older patients, he said the top risk is high blood pressure. That puts strain on the aorta, he said, threatening its integrity.
Lee said keeping a close watch on blood pressure, an exercise regimen and a heart-healthy diet all reduce the risk of aortic dissection in older adults.
A heart-healthy diet includes a wide variety of vegetables and fruits, according to the American Heart Association, and protein from fish and legumes instead of meat. The group also recommends less soda and alcohol.
Graham was a former Air Force attorney who represented South Carolina in Congress for more than 30 years, first as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and then as a U.S. Senator. A Republican, he became a close ally and confidant of President Donald Trump and was known as a foreign policy hawk who advocated a more aggressive foreign policy, including the ongoing U.S.-Iran war, according to The Associated Press.
His death sent Republicans scrambling to choose his successor in South Carolina, a bastion of conservative politics. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said Monday that Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, would serve out the remainder of his term, which ends in January.
An official cause of Graham’s death will be available after toxicological and microscopic testing, the AP reported.
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