Articles

Abdominal aortic aneurysms called "silent killers"
October 25, 2010

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm or AAA is a swelling of the largest artery in the abdomen.  It is caused by a weakness in the artery that enlarges like a balloon with the pressure generated by each heartbeat.  Most AAA’s are undetected until they are discovered when ultrasound tests and CAT scans are performed for other reasons, or until the AAA ruptures and causes massive internal bleeding.

The risk of rupture of an AAA is directly related to the diameter of the aneurysm.  Once discovered, the AAA will need to be followed closely or repaired to prevent rupture.  Approximately 200,000 new AAA’s are diagnosed each year in the United States.  It is estimated that 15,000 people die each year of a ruptured aneurysm.

The repair of an AAA can be performed conventionally by open surgery where the artery is repaired by sewing a graft inside the bulging blood vessel and eliminating the aneurysm or, by placing a stent graft within the aneurysm sac using two small incisions in the groin less than two inches in length.  Stent grafts can be used in select patients who are suited anatomically for the device.  About 60% to 70% of AAA’s can be repaired with the minimally invasive stent graft.  Patients who have AAA repair with stent grafts are hospitalized usually overnight with no planned ICU stay.  Return to full activity is much more rapid than with open repair.  Recent publications in scientific journals have confirmed that the total number of deaths from aneurysms has decreased in the United States since the introduction of stent grafts.

At Boca Raton Community Hospital two vascular surgeons, David Wulkan, M.D. and John Motta, M.D. have been treating AAA’s using both open conventional repair and the minimally invasive Stent Grafts.  They have vast experience in the South Florida region with Stent Grafts, having performed almost 500 of these procedures.  Even patients who come to the Emergency Room with life threatening ruptured AAA’s are treated with stent graft repair, if they are candidates anatomically.  This minimally invasive therapy brings the latest in technology and up to date therapy for this deadly condition.