Brand-New Technology Used in Cardiovascular Procedure

Two Lufkin physicians use brand-new technology to drastically repair a patient’s aortic aneurysm in a safer, less traumatic procedure.

Utilizing the talents and skills of local Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon David Ladden, M.D. and Interventional Cardiologist M. Musa Khan, M.D., an endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) procedure using an aortic branch device was performed Thursday, May 12. This was only the 5th procedure done like this in the state, and the only one done outside of the major medical centers in Houston and Dallas.

As described by Dr. Ladden and Dr. M. Khan, blood flows down from the heart where it then branches off near the pelvic region into the two iliac arteries that flow through the legs. In this case, the patient had three aneurysms – one in the aorta and two aneurysms in each of his iliac arteries. The new technology – just recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – allows the physicians to place a stent in the main artery and then connect separate modular grafts creating one piece for optimal blood flow and a successful outcome for the patient. All of this is done via two small incisions in the legs.

“This procedure required a team approach from both the cardiovascular surgeon and the interventional cardiologist,” said Dr. Khan. “It was an excellent coordination of the two fields of medicine. Dr. Ladden and I were able to use the best of our skill sets to complement each other to provide the best outcome for our patient.”

The standard procedure to repair abdominal aneurysms traditionally has proven successful, but can be very risky due to large incisions and lengthy surgical time.

“Our patient would have been dramatically traumatized by the traditional open procedure, but with the new stent he was able to go home from the hospital the very next day,” said Dr. Ladden. “I really love this new technology because it makes it easy on the patient and on the physicians. We were able to do a major procedure in a safer fashion.”

“The traditional open procedure takes several hours, but with this new stent, it was an elegant procedure both in brevity and low risk to the patient,” said Dr. Khan. “The time of surgery was reduced remarkably – from several hours to about 90 minutes.”