Greg Purcell, Tanya Stewart

Royal North Shore Hospital, St. Leonards, NSW, Australia

William of Ockham, a small village in Surrey, became a celebrated Franciscan monk and philosopher, and initially published his dictum, since paraphrased "the simplest explanation is usually the best", that has been sharpened by subsequent philosophers and theologians to become the "Occam's razor" that tests simplicity on logical grounds.

Michael DeBakey pioneered surgical epistemology on aortic disruptions and confronted the razor in an unusual and contentious manner.

Managing acute thoracic aortic disruptions today has become more complex with the hasty administration of ADP receptor and cyclo-oxygenase inhibitors for severe cental chest pain.

Occram would benefit currently from the contributions of the University of Michigan's IRAD ( International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissections) and their insights lighten the journey however the ultimate destination remains elusive. Can we keep it simple?

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