Surgery Vascular Surgery News Archive Featured in the Media JeffNEWS Jefferson Aortic Center

Thomas Jefferson University Hospital has opened a new center that will provide patients access to the most advanced technologies available in the treatment of aortic aneurysms, dissections and other maladies anywhere in the body. 

The Aortic Center at Jefferson is made up of a multidisciplinary team of surgical and medical specialists focused on preoperative and postoperative care, making for a strong blend of surgical expertise, technology and quality bedside care.

“Our goal is to use a multi-specialty approach to providing comprehensive care for aortic problems,” said Joseph Lombardi, MD, director of the new center and chief of Vascular Surgery at the Methodist Hospital Division of Jefferson University Hospital.

Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA), which are diagnosed in more than 20,000 U.S. patients annually, occur when a section of the aorta, the body’s main circulatory vessel, weakens and bulges outward like a balloon in the section of the artery that runs through the chest.

“Should the aneurysm grow to the point where it ruptures, the patient would be at high risk for rapid death due to internal bleeding,” said Dr. Lombardi.

The Jefferson Aortic Center offers treatment of:

• Aortic dissections
• Abdominal aortic aneurysms
• Arch aortic aneurysms
• Ascending aortic aneurysms                             
• Descending thoracic aneurysms
• Iliac aneurysms
• Pseudoaneurysms of the aorta
• Visceral aneurysms

Clinical studies are currently being conducted at Jefferson that focus on aortic aneurysms of the chest, aortic dissection and other complicated aneurysms. Given that patients with these problems are generally 65 and older, these trials focus on minimally invasive techniques that allow aortic reconstruction from within the arteries. 

Patients diagnosed with TAA traditionally have had to undergo a highly invasive  procedure where a surgeon opens the chest cavity, stops blood flow thorugh the aorta and sews a new surgical graft to replace the aneurysm. Such open surgical procedures carry high health risks for many older patients, who may also suffer from other significant medical conditions such as diabetes or hypertension.

When a patient requires open surgery, Jefferson specialists in vascular surgery, cardiothoracic surgery and cardiology are uniquely involved to ensure a comprehensive and coordinated plan of care is delivered.

Some of the minimally invasive benefits of using stent grafts include having to make only one small incision, usually in the groin, to allow the insertion of the graft's advanced delivery system into the femoral artery. Once a catheter is guided into position through the patient’s arteries under fluoroscopy, a two-piece, fabric-covered, self-expanding stent graft is secured inside the weakened section of the thoracic aorta to relieve pressure on the aneurysm, greatly reducing the risk of rupture.

“This will allow patients, who would have otherwise had a lengthy hospitalization and high mortality, to be discharged the very next day after surgery with very little pain and immediate good quality of life” said Dr. Lombardi.

For information or to make an appointment with a physician at the Aortic Center at Jefferson, call 1-800 JEFF-NOW.