Aortic Surgery Center Forming at Hackensack University Medical Center Will Bring Surgeons and Endovascular Experts Together in Care and Research
Collaborative aorta endovascular and surgical approaches push boundaries in stenting and surgical techniques
At Hackensack University Medical Center, aortic dissections and aneurysm repairs get evaluated for both surgical and stent solution potential, and often the end approach is a hybrid option. The multidisciplinary team is in the process of formalizing an aortic surgery center, which will enhance collaboration further, offering combined medical appointments to see surgeons and interventionists.
The aortic surgery program is one of the busiest in New Jersey, performing up to 60 cases of ascending aorta surgery a year, including 15 to 25 emergency aortic dissections, with outstanding outcomes. Survival stands at 90% in emergency cases and 98 to 99% in elective aortic surgeries.
George Batsides, M.D., chief of Cardiac Surgery, Hackensack University Medical Center, credits their success to the surgical team’s depth of experience, high volumes and participation in device and technique innovation. The team regularly handles complex aortic cases, such as a third-round repair, and provides world-class outcomes with the most complex open aortic repairs, from the aortic root to the aortic arch.
As aortic aneurysms treatment options expanded from open surgery to stenting in abdomen positions and later chest positions, Hackensack University Medical Center embraced and helped pioneer new stenting techniques. Today, Hackensack University Medical Center offers the area’s largest series of options for the endovascular treatment of complex ascending and aortic arch pathologies.
The team regularly partners with industry in new technology trials, including clinical studies exploring aortic stent positions accommodating branch arteries, frequently performing first-of-its-kind procedures. This track record led to the center’s recent involvement in a multicenter FDA trial for a novel endovascular ascending aortic stent graft.
“We’re pushing the limits and getting closer to the heart with stents so a heart surgeon doesn’t have to open the chest as often,” Michael Wilderman, M.D., chief of Endovascular Surgery, Hackensack University Medical Center, and associate professor, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, said. “As endovascular techniques get better, the goal is all will be done with stents at some point.”
Vascular and cardiac surgeons assess patients collaboratively and present the option with the best possible outcomes and meeting patient objectives, age and lifestyle. And solutions may entail hybrid or minimally invasive approaches, such as a partial sternum opening and stenting aortic branches during a surgical aorta repair.
Plans for the new aortic surgery center also include genetic counseling, a nurse navigator, patient education and research facilitation. The program maintains a 400-patient database with rich outcomes data, insight on bicuspid valve disease tied to aortic aneurysm and genetic factors.
“Our mission as a new aortic surgery center would involve published outcomes, expanded research and industry collaboration on new technology in our high-volume center,” Dr. Batsides said. “We plan to provide our region and the state world-class open and endovascular thoracic aortic surgery, encompassing all aspects of open techniques, state-of-the-art endovascular, and hybrid approaches in a multidisciplinary manner.”
Follow-up studies with emergency dissection patients are already underway to help the team better understand what techniques have the best long-range results. Future research may focus on dissection biomarker identification, presenting an opportunity to predict cases with simple blood work.
Learn more about cardiovascular innovations happening at Hackensack University Medical Center.
