• Arterial Stenting Technique

VITA physicians are Vascular Interventional Physicians, which means the primary focus of their practice is treating vascular disease using minimally invasive techniques. They do not practice surgery, but rather fix arteries through tiny incisions in the hip area, where small catheters and devices are inserted to fix blocked arteries. These procedures are generally considered safer than traditional open surgery, with excellent clinical results, and short recovery times.

The main interventional techniques to open clogged arteries, are balloon angioplasty, stents, stent-grafts, and atherectomy. These techniques can be applied to almost any region of the body, including the arms and legs, the carotid arteries to the brain, the kidneys, the stomach and intestines.

Balloon angioplasty is the technique of inserting a small balloon catheter over a wire into the clogged area, and opening the balloon, which in turn opens the artery.

• Balloon angioplasty technique

Stenting involves placing a metallic tube through tiny catheters inserted into the clogged artery. The stent opens and helps to keep the clogged artery open. The stents are typically permanent, helping to keep the artery open for the rest of the persons life. Some stents are bonded with medicine that helps keep the artery from re-clogging. This is referred to as a drug-eluting stent.

Stent-grafting is the same as stenting, except the stent is covered with a cloth-like graft material, which further helps to keep the artery open in some situations.

Atherectomy involves placing a small cutting catheter into the clogged artery, again over a wire, and removing the plaque causing the clogged artery through the catheter. The plaque is actually removed from the body, opening the clogged area for improved blood flow. The main device used in this technique is the Silverhawk Atherectomy device. VITA physicians have been using this device for years with excellent results.