Open Vascular Surgery

Despite the advances made with minimally invasive endovascular surgery, not all vascular disease can be treated with these techniques. Open surgery is tried and tested, has excellent long term data and results, and can be a better longer term durable option in certain cases.

At Yarra Vascular Surgeons we are highly skilled in both open and endovascular surgical techniques and will give an unbiased opinion and recommendation based on your condition and circumstances.

Open surgery generally requires an anaesthetic, and the recovery time is generally longer compared to minimally invasive endovascular surgery. As the physiological demands and operative risks are higher for a patient to cope with an open vascular operation and anaesthetic, at Yarra Vascular Surgeons we make sure that all aspects of the patient’s fitness is assessed before recommending and proceeding with a major open vascular operation.

Common open Vascular surgical procedures include:

• Arterial bypass operation
  • When an artery is blocked, a bypass procedure can be performed to restore blood flow to the affected area
  • Bypasses are most commonly performed in the thigh and leg, and can also be performed in the abdomen, pelvis, neck, and upper limb
  • The patient’s own vein is used to perform the bypass in most cases
• Endarterectomy (cleaning out the artery)
  • When an artery is blocked over a short segment, a focused operation can be performed to ‘clean out’ the artery to restore blood flow to the affected area
  • Endarterectomies can be performed in the groin, leg, neck, abdomen, pelvis and upper limb
• Arterial aneurysm repair
  • When an artery has enlarged and reached a threshold size over its normal size, an aneurysm repair can be performed to remove the aneurysm and prevent it from bursting
  • The aneurysm is ‘excluded’ from the circulation usually with a bypass operation
  • Aneurysm repairs are most commonly performed in the abdomen or in the legs
• Renal replacement for chronic renal failure
  • Arteriovenous fistula or graft – a surgically created connection between the artery and the vein enables repetitive needling for repetitive withdrawal and injection of blood for arteriovenous dialysis
  • Tunnelled catheters – a surgically inserted tube (‘Perm Cath’ or similar) into a large vein that allows repetitive withdrawal and injection of blood for arteriovenous dialysis. This is typically in one of the large veins of the neck (jugular vein)
  • Peritoneal dialysis catheter – a surgically inserted tube (‘Tenckhoff’ catheter or similar) into the abdominal cavity that allows access for peritoneal dialysis
• Varicose veins stripping
  • The traditional varicose veins stripping involves removing the veins through multiple incisions in the groin, thigh and leg

As all open vascular operations are unique to the individual and disease process, a tailored explanation of the benefits, risks, likely outcomes, chances of success, and alternative options will be discussed with you in more detail during your consultation.