What Does a Vascular Surgeon Do: Your Guide to Specialized Vascular Care
Ask someone what a cardiologist does, and they may answer with "heart doctor", while orthopedic surgeons specialize in bones and joints - but mention vascular surgeon, and you might get blank stares! Which is odd considering that your vascular system runs throughout your entire body, affecting nearly every aspect of health.
Experience in treating vascular conditions has taught me that most people don't know what vascular surgeons do until they need us, so let me provide an overview of what a vascular surgeon does and when and why you may require one for treatment.
Understanding What a Vascular Surgeon Treats
Vascular surgeons specialize in all the areas where blood and lymph flow throughout your body, excluding your heart and brain. Cardiac surgeons treat cardiac blood vessels while neurosurgeons manage brain blood vessels - we specialize in everything else from your neck down to your toes.
Your cardiovascular system encompasses many systems. Arteries deliver oxygen-rich blood away from your heart; veins bring it back. Lymphatic vessels help strengthen immunity. All these systems may encounter complications that require professional intervention to rectify.
What often surprises people is that just because vascular specialists carry the title of "surgeon," it doesn't mean we are operating around the clock. Modern vascular specialists spend considerable time managing conditions with medication, lifestyle advice, and minimally invasive procedures - surgery is just one tool in their toolbox, not their only one!
Training Requirements for Vascular Specialists
Achieving certification as a vascular specialist typically takes 13-15 years from college graduation, including four years of medical school, five-year general surgery residency training, and possibly one to two years of fellowship specializing in vascular surgery.
Why so long? We must master both traditional open surgery and all of the more modern endovascular techniques - such as minimally invasive surgeries performed through tiny incisions with catheters under imaging guidance - in order to select which approach would best meet each case's requirements. Learning both approaches takes time and requires training volume.
Board certification from the American Board of Surgery matters when you're searching for care. A credential means your vascular surgeon has demonstrated their skills through continual education programs and continues to advance them with continuing studies.
Carotid Disease Treatment and Stroke Prevention
Your carotid arteries run up both sides of your neck, providing blood to your brain. When plaque builds up in them - known as carotid stenosis - this increases stroke risk significantly.
Many people live with carotid disease without even realizing it; no symptoms until something serious occurs. That's why screening matters for those at high risk such as smoking history, diabetes or family history of stroke.
Ultrasound imaging allows us to diagnose carotid disease through its ultrasound images, showing build-up and measuring its effect on blood flow. Treatment options available to carotid disease sufferers may include medication to stabilize plaque build-up while managing risk factors.
- Carotid endarterectomy, where we surgically clear away any blockage in your artery
- Carotid Artery Stenting as a Noninvasive Solution
If you have been diagnosed with carotid stenosis or have experienced warning signs such as short vision loss, weakness or speech problems it is essential that an evaluation takes place as early detection is key in order to preventing stroke before it occurs. The goal with carotid disease treatment should always be prevention before stroke occurs.
Deep Vein Thrombosis Treatment for Blood Clots
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), commonly found in legs, requires immediate medical intervention as the blood clot can break loose and travel to your lungs and cause pulmonary embolism - potentially life threatening pulmonary embolisms that require emergency care to combat.
Warning signs for leg swelling include sudden leg swelling, severe charley horse pain, warmth and redness in the leg area. People recovering from surgery, pregnant women traveling long haul flights, as well as those suffering clotting disorders are at higher risk.
Deep vein thrombosis treatments begin with blood thinners to prevent existing clots from expanding further and new ones from forming. If necessary, more serious cases might require thrombolytic drugs or physical removal with thrombectomy; for these instances an IVC filter may also be placed within an abdominal vein to detect and stop any attempts by blood clots to reach their lungs.
If you experience symptoms of DVT after surgery, prolonged sitting or pregnancy, consult with a leg blood clot doctor immediately - time is of the essence with this condition!
Peripheral Artery Disease and PAD Treatment
Peripheral Artery Disease, more commonly referred to as PAD, affects your legs and feet by restricting blood flow through artery narrowing. A common sign is claudication, leg cramping that subsides with rest; without treatment PAD can even increase wound non-healing risk leading to an increased likelihood of amputation risk.
Lifestyle modifications and exercise programs may help, including walking more despite any discomfort. This approach works by encouraging your body to form collateral blood vessels; medications help improve blood flow, manage risk factors, and manage symptoms; when conservative therapies don't suffice we have surgical options like angioplasty, stenting, atherectomy to remove plaque deposits; in severe cases bypass surgery might be needed.
Varicose Vein Management at Our Vein Clinic
While varicose veins may seem cosmetic in nature, they often indicate venous insufficiency. When your vein valves don't function as intended, blood pools instead of returning efficiently back to your heart resulting in bulging veins with bulges, twists and other symptoms including acheiness, heaviness or skin changes resulting in bulging veins as a telltale sign. Our vein clinic can offer varicose vein management services so we can treat these veins effectively!
An expert varicose vein specialist can assess and recommend treatment, which typically entails minimally-invasive approaches like endovenous laser therapy, radiofrequency ablation, Sclerotherapy injections and Ambulatory Phlebectomy as well as VenaSeal closure systems.
These procedures typically occur in an outpatient setting, allowing you to quickly get treated and return home quickly with minimal downtime.
Aneurysm Detection and Repair by Your Vascular Surgeon
An aneurysm, also known as an abdominal aortic aneurysm or AAA, is a weak spot in an artery wall that balloons out. We most frequently treat AAAs; many individuals don't realize they have them until it shows up during imaging for another condition.
Rupture poses the greatest threat, necessitating an emergency surgery with high mortality rates. Therefore, screening is particularly crucial for high-risk groups such as men aged 65+ who have ever smoked and anyone with family history of AAA disease.
Small aneurysms should be monitored closely. Once they reach a certain size or begin growing, treatment becomes necessary. Endovascular aneurysm repair involves placing a stent graft inside the aneurysm through small incisions in the groin; open surgical repair involves extracting any weak sections and replacing them with an artificial graft.
Wound Care Clinic Services for Non-Healing Ulcers
Poor circulation can contribute to slow healing wounds in people living with diabetes. What may start off as a small blister may quickly turn into an ulcer because your body cannot deliver enough oxygen and nutrients needed for full healing. Diabetics often don't notice these wounds until they're infected - an additional problem.
Foot ulcer specialists within wound care clinics specialize in providing treatments designed to promote healing and avoid infections. Many vascular practices also provide dedicated wound care services as they have such close ties between circulation issues and wound healing.
Care may include advanced wound dressings, debridement of damaged tissue, revascularization procedures to increase blood flow, hyperbaric oxygen therapy or skin grafting if the wounds are large enough. With diabetes foot ulcers being one of the main causes for lower limb amputation, proper wound care clinic treatments may prevent such outcomes from happening.
Advanced Diagnostic Tools Your Vascular Specialist Uses
Vascular medicine relies on cutting-edge imaging. Duplex ultrasound is our go-to technology - noninvasive, radiation free and shows real time blood flow allowing us to easily see narrowing, measure velocities and check for clots in real time.
CT and MR angiography provide three-dimensional maps of your blood vessels to aid with planning procedures and assessing complex anatomy. Traditional angiography involves threading a catheter through your vessels and injecting contrast dye for clear pictures - it may even be combined with immediate treatment plans for maximum effectiveness.
The ankle-brachial index test is deceptively straightforward: just compare blood pressure in your ankle and arm for fifteen minutes to see if they have peripheral artery disease. Intravascular ultrasound images capture what's happening inside a blood vessel itself to assist during procedures and provide clarity regarding treatment locations.
Vascular Surgeon Treatment Options: Minimally Invasive vs. Open Surgery
Endovascular procedures have revolutionized vascular medicine. Now instead of needing lengthy incisions and weeks-long recoveries for certain conditions, many can now be addressed through punctures as small as an eraser tip.
Benefits of outpatient or inpatient procedures may include shorter hospital stays or outpatient treatments, faster recovery timeframes, less pain and scarring, reduced complications risks, and often local rather than general anesthesia. Consider angioplasty and stenting: we thread a catheter from your groin to the blocked area where a balloon will compress plaque before placing a stent to keep it open - with most patients returning home on the same day!
But open surgery hasn't completely vanished from modern medicine's repertoire: some circumstances still necessitate traditional surgical repair procedures, including extensive disease, complex anatomy or failed endovascular attempts that fail. A bypass graft may work better in bypassing long blockages than trying to resolve them from within; your vascular surgeon can advise which approach makes sense in your situation.
Additional Services: Intravenous Infusion Therapy and Beyond
Most vascular practices provide services beyond procedures, with some conditions requiring intravenous infusion therapy for treatment, such as blood clot medications or antibiotics for infected grafts or wounds requiring direct bloodstream delivery; advanced practices often have dedicated infusion centers for outpatient treatments.
Dialysis patients require reliable vascular access. We develop and manage arteriovenous fistulas and grafts, then handle any potential complications as soon as they arise - keeping their dialysis access functioning is literally lifesaving for these patients.
Prevention is another cornerstone of our practice. We screen high-risk patients before symptoms arise, assess cardiovascular risk factors, support smoking cessation efforts, provide diet and exercise guidance and manage medications. If vascular disease exists anywhere else in your body, chances are high it is also present elsewhere - we coordinate with other doctors in managing this systemic risk factor.
When Should You Seek Medical Attention From Vascular Specialists?
Many don't recognize they need vascular care until a serious issue has arisen, but you should seek an evaluation if any of the following symptoms arise:
- Leg pain while walking that improves with rest
- Persistent leg swelling
- Varicose veins causing pain or discomfort
- Non-healing wounds on legs or feet
- Cold feet or legs
- Alterations in leg color or texture
- Pulsating mass in your abdomen
- Sudden pain, swelling, warmth or redness in one leg
Risk factors alone may warrant screening even without symptoms being present; diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking history or family history all increase your risk. Early detection often means simpler treatment plans and better outcomes.
What Should Happen at Your First Consultation
Your initial visit starts off with an in-depth conversation about your symptoms and medical history, to gain a full picture of what's ailing you, its duration and any associated health conditions that may be relevant.
Physical exams of legs and feet involve checking pulses, listening to blood flow with Doppler technology, looking for skin changes or wounds and ordering tests such as ultrasound or ankle-brachial index for immediate testing if indicated or scheduling further appointments later.
Expect your vascular surgeon to spend ample time explaining our findings and their meaning, since our field often leaves people confused. A good physician should take the time to walk you through their thinking, explain your options, and discuss likely outcomes.
Advanced Veins and Vascular provides professional vascular surgery services to Hillsdale County and Coldwater, Michigan residents. Our experienced vascular surgeons specialize in everything from varicose veins to complex arterial disease, and utilize cutting-edge diagnostic technologies and minimally invasive treatment strategies while taking time to explain everything we're doing and why.
No matter the condition affecting your veins, our team provides full spectrum care - be it deep vein thrombosis treatment, assistance with blood clots, evaluation for leg pain or any other aspect. Our wound care clinic specializes in complex wounds that won't heal; when necessary we offer intravenous infusion therapy; while our vein clinic offers modern varicose veins treatment without long recovery times.
Board certification, years of experience, comprehensive services and an accessible location - these factors do not just play into outcomes and experiences as patients; they directly affect them!
Schedule Your Vascular Specialist Consultation
Are you feeling vascular symptoms or concerned about circulation? Call Advanced Veins and Vascular to schedule an evaluation Today - our team will determine the source of the issue while creating a treatment plan suited specifically for you!
