Outcomes 2016 - Baylor Hamilton Heart and Vascular Hospital FY 2016 | Page 56
Aortic Aneurysms
In fiscal year 2016, vascular surgeons on the medical
staff at Baylor Jack and Jane Hamilton Heart and
Vascular Hospital treated hundreds of patients with a
variety of aneurysms. Aneurysms can occur in any
weakened blood vessel, and the largest artery in
the body, the aorta, is the most common location.
Preventing or repairing a rupture of the aneurysm is the
most important goal in treatment and therapy.
Using evidence-based approaches, vascular surgeons on the
medical staff at Baylor Hamilton Heart and Vascular Hospital
continued to develop new “best practices” in diagnosing
and repairing aneurysms. In fact, vascular surgeons from
throughout the United States and other parts of the world
sought out the experts at Baylor Hamilton Heart and Vascular
Hospital to learn these new techniques.
Again in 2016, U.S. News & World Report recognized the
hospital’s abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) program as
“High Performing” based on the number of patients treated
and outcomes achieved.
The vascular surgeons on the medical staff of Baylor Hamilton
Heart and Vascular Hospital identify the intricacies of
each individual patient’s situation, proceed with the best
endovascular or open treatment option for the patient’s
circumstances, and rely on innovation and evidence-based
research for novel approaches to vascular surgery.
Some aneurysms require emergent care. In other cases following
assessment, a patient can electively and selectively choose the
timing for intervention. Intervention may require traditional
open surgery or an endovascular stent procedure, but the
majority of patients with aneurysmal disease may be successfully
treated with minimally invasive endovascular approaches.
The Centers for
Disease Control
estimate that
aneurysms, balloon-
like bulges in the wall
of a weakened blood
vessel, contribute to
approximately 17,000
deaths in the United
States annually, making
it the 13th leading
cause of mortality.
Affiliation with Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas
and its Level 1 Trauma Center contributed to Baylor Heart and
Vascular Services at Dallas’ growing vascular and aneurysm
programs. As a Level 1 Trauma Center, the complexity of cases
that often present to the vascular surgeons on the medical staff
require the experience and expertise that the Baylor Dallas'
team possesses to achieve successful outcomes with challenging
cases. During the past several years, estimates indicated that
more than 25 percent of aortic procedures performed by
vascular surgeons and cardiac surgeons on the medical staff at
Baylor Dallas were for life-threatening acute aortic dissections.
Vascular surgeons on the medical staff at Baylor Hamilton
Heart and Vascular Hospital are often called upon for second
opinions and/or review of complex clinical cases involving
Aortic Abdominal Aneurysms.
A variety of complex aortic surgery procedures are performed
by vascular surgeons on the medical staff, often in a
multidisciplinary team environment that may include cardiac
surgeons and interventional cardiologists.
The most common procedural options include:
• Endovascular stent grafting
• Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) Repair
• Thoracoabdominal Aortic Repair – Aneurysms
that involve the aorta as it flows through both the
abdomen and chest
• Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Repair –
Aortic aneurysms in
the chest that can
involve the aortic
root, ascending
aorta, aortic arch, or
descending aorta
• Endovascular
Aneurysm Repair
(EVAR)
• Complex
Fenestrated/
Branched Grafts
• Traditional open
surgery
Normal
aorta
54
COMPLEX AORTIC CASES
Abdominal
aortic aneurysm
Thoracic aneurysm
*Images courtesy of NorthPoint Domain