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Vascular Medicine

Vascular Medicine in Vienna

Which is the most common diseases in the whole world? It is Vascular calcification and Atherosclerosis is here still responsible for almost half of all deaths!

 

First-class specialists at the Wiener Privatklinik treat Vascular blockages caused by atherosclerosis

Impact of Atherosclerosis

The impact and result of Atherosclerosis is the narrowing or blocking of blood vessels.

The consequences differ and depend on the affected arteries.

Most common diseases of this type is peripheral artery occlusive disease (PAOD) due to a blockage or narrowing of one or more arteries in the legs. A blockage of a coronary vessel causes a heart attack, a constriction of the artery supplying the brain (carotid artery) causes a stroke, a narrowing of a renal artery can lead to hypertension or kidney failure.

 

Vascular board of the Wiener Privatklinik

Modern Vascular medicine is characterized by its interdisciplinarity! Vascular surgeons and Angiologists but also interventional radiologists work hand in hand to assure best results and treatment possible.

The WPK therefore has a so-called vascular board: Physicians with a background in a variety of disciplines work out the optimal treatment for patients with severe circulatory disorders: This happens together as a team, to make sure that the complexity of those diseases is reflected and analyzed from all possible perspectives.

The WPK ensures that the specialists of the different disciplines work closely together and also focus on prevention of metabolic disorders that precede vascular diseases. Crucial is the understanding and communication of risk factors in order to prevent vascular diseases. 

Best medical treatment of vascular diseases in Austria at the Wiener Privatklinik

When treating existing vascular diseases, the first is the optimization of the risk factor profile.

The best medical care out there is based on drugs such as blood thinners, cholesterol reducers, even blood sugar or blood pressure regulating drugs!

But there is apart nothing more effective then lifestyle changes: no more smoking, lots of exercise and a healthy diet.

The treatment in order to open the blocked arteries is dominated by two core methods:

Endovascular treatment with a balloon-tipped catheter and stent or vascular treatment with a bypass surgery or an atherectomy.

The vascular board takes the decision about the therapy in an interdisciplinary conversation.

The decision over the treatment method is very complex and is comprehensively evaluated before taken.

In general there can be said: Smaller and shorter blockages are more likely to be removed with minimally invasive endovascular procedures, whereas larger and longer blockages require most of the time surgery.

In the case of endovascular treatment, a catheter is first passed through the bloodstream to the target area and an angiogram is performed. This is necessary as a first step in order to identify the blockage. After a wire is fed to the site of the blockage where the balloon is inflated to stretch the narrowed area, and a stent is inserted, which is a metal mesh tube that holds the vessel open. These minimally invasive procedures have incredible advantages: Risks are reduced to a minimum and success chances are incredible high, even in the case of existing long blockages.

In recent years the field of endovascular treatment has made great progress and the complication rate for coronary artery procedures is de facto negligible. 

The re-narrowing rate of a coronary artery (restenosis) is below two percent in the long term, which shows how effective this field developed and how promising a treatment here is for every patient.

Another milestone in endovascular medicine was the so-called transradial approach, which is the minimally invasive insertion of a catheter via an artery on the wrist.

This Approach comes with several groundbreaking advantages: A lower risk of bleeding, a lower occurrence of renal insufficiency and  the preservation of the patient’s mobility!

Patients are most of the time even able to go home at the day of the operational treatment.

Bypass and atherectomy at the Wiener Privatklinik

Vascular surgeons treat narrowed vessels from head to toe.

An incision is made through the skin to reach the vessels, expose them and treat them surgically. The most common options are bypass surgery and atherectomy.

A bypass is a surgically created detour of blocked vessels using the patient’s own vessel (such as a vein from the leg) or a synthetic graft to redirect blood around the blocked section. This way, the blood can bypass the blocked vessel. In atherectomy, the clogged artery is cut open lengthwise to remove the often elongated plaque formation. The vessel is then closed with a patch of tissue that is sutured in.

One very important aspect about Vascular surgery: It is not about getting everything on a pre-surgery level; the goal is eliminate or improve relevant symptoms. The decision about the possibility of a vascular surgery is made based on factors like the patient’s health, concomitant diseases and living circumstances.”

 

Vascular Medicine at the Wiener Privatklinik: Treatment with Hybrid procedures

The vascular board very likely does not decide for only one of the two methods, this is open vascular surgery versus endovascular surgery, but rather that a combination of both a so called “hybrid procedure” leads to the most promising results.

To give an example: The vascular surgeon might expose the blocked femoral artery and remove the plaque, while in the same session a catheter is inserted upwards and a narrowing in the pelvic floor is stretched and fitted with a stent.

Find the best Vascular Surgeons and Specialists for Vascular Surgery in Austraia at the Wiener Privatklinik 

The team of the Wiener Privatklinik consists of Top Vascular Surgeons and Specialists for Vascular Surgery! Contact the Wiener Privatklinik directly or book your appointment.

Additionally we give you the option to receive a Medical Second Opinion Online and book an appointment for an online consultation in the field of Vascular Surgery! Contact us today directly at our Online Healthcare Center for more information!