By WKTV Staff
A West Michigan patient is on the road to recovery after two Trinity Health Grand Rapids surgeons successfully repaired a complex aortic aneurysm using a groundbreaking new procedure available at just a few sites in Michigan.
On November 18, Michelle Kosovec, MD, Section Chief, Vascular Surgery, Trinity Health Grand Rapids, and Joshua Greenberg, MD, Medical Director, Endovascular Services, Trinity Health Grand Rapids, completed a thoracoabdominal branch endoprosthesis repair of a complex aortic aneurysm.
The patient, a 61-year-old man, was discharged from the hospital a few days later and is doing well.
Complex surgical repair
The aorta is the largest artery in the body, and carries blood flow from the heart to the rest of the body.
A thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm is a bulging in the aorta that extends from the chest to the abdomen. Over time an aneurysm may grow, further weakening the wall of the aorta, or it can burst completely causing rupture, which is bleeding inside the body.
Surgery to repair the aneurysm significantly reduces the risk of an aneurysm rupture, which can be fatal.
However, this is often one of the most difficult aortic aneurysms to treat because there are important blood vessels that supply critical organs in this location, all of which are stented individually while relining the inside of the aorta to provide a seal.
The current standard of open surgical repair is complex and associated with a high rate of mortality and morbidity.
Using an innovative new procedure
For this patient, Drs. Kosovec and Greenberg used the GORE® EXCLUDER® Thoracoabdominal Branch Endoprosthesis (TAMBE), an innovative new procedure that enables surgeons to provide care that is both effective and timely for complex aneurysm repair.
“For these extensive aneurysms – those that span the chest and belly – we’re now able to treat them with this much more advanced device that supplies blood to the aorta, abdominal branch vessels and lower limbs,” said Dr. Kosovec. “For patients, it’s a much less invasive treatment option with potentially lower rates of surgical complications, blood loss and death, as well as shorter hospital stays, and a quicker recovery compared to open surgical repair.
“This is the biggest innovation in the last 10 years and our Grand Rapids team is one of just a few sites in the state that’s able to offer it.”
Resource link
Visit Trinity Health Michigan for more information about their cardiovascular care.
