Vascular Surgery Program

Yale-New Haven Hospital and Yale School of Medicine have been performing open vascular surgery since the early 1960s and endovascular interventions for the past decade. Vascular surgery is a truly independent specialty that can take care of vascular disease with either medical management or interventions with either surgical or percutaneous techniques. Increasingly in the U.S., a larger proportion of vascular cases are being done with endovascular technology instead of open operations. Our philosophy is based on the recognition that the care of the patient with peripheral vascular disease is rendered, of necessity, through this multidisciplinary approach.

Yale-New Haven Heart and Vascular Center performs all manners of open vascular procedures, including carotid and femoral endarterectomies, extremity and visceral bypass grafts, and repair of aneurysms of the aorta and its branches. We also perform minimally invasive procedures such as carotid, visceral, renal or femoral artery angioplasty and/or stent, as well as endovascular repair of abdominal (EVAR) and thoracic aorta (TEVAR).

Yale-New Haven Heart and Vascular Center offers a wide variety of modern diagnostic and therapeutic options for patients with disease of the branches of the aorta that supply the kidneys or intestines. Non-invasive and minimally invasive therapies are used to characterize the anatomy and assess both the hemodynamic and functional significance of lesions that are identified. Dr. Richard Gusberg and Dr. Jeffrey Pollak have expertise in both endovascular and open operative treatment options to be able to match safety, effectiveness and durability to the specifics of the patient’s problem and status.

We are proud of a leading clinical program in aortic repair spearheaded by Dr. Bart Muhs. Yale-New Haven Heart and Vascular Center is one of the country’s foremost centers for the treatment and study of aneurysms of the aorta, emphasizing the dynamic interface between the pulsating artery and the fixed stent-graft. Yale is involved in pioneering work on dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the aorta with Dr. Muhs and Dr. Hamid Mojibian. Dr. Muhs is also collaborating with the University of Utrect in the Netherlands in the development of new types of endovascular grafts that may allow fixation to side branches of the aorta.

Yale-New Haven Heart and Vascular Center is among the foremost programs in the region that applies evidence-based multidisciplinary treatment in order to preserve limb function and prevent foot and leg amputations. Dr. John Aruny, Dr. Peter Blume and I carefully assess and manage vascular disease, biomechanical abnormalities, wound coverage, infections and metabolic derangements. The multidisciplinary approach provides a comprehensive treatment protocol and significantly increases the chances of successfully healing the ulcer and prevents recurrence. Dr. Jeffrey Indes manages the minimally invasive approach to venous disease.

Our advanced expertise in covered stent technology for vascular aneurysms recently enabled collaboration between vascular surgery and a Yale pediatric cardiologist to perform Connecticut’s first non-operative repair of a descending aortic aneurysm associated with aortic coarctation. We anticipate further collaborations and innovative procedures which offer patients less pain and shorter recoveries to increasingly become a preferred surgical approach.

Yale-New Haven Heart and Vascular Center is proud of having trained many vascular surgeons since 1996. First and foremost, we strive to produce individuals with superior surgical skills with strong clinical judgment and exceptional medical management of patients with vascular disease.

Bauer Sumpio, MD, PhD, FACS
Professor of Surgery and Radiology, Yale School of Medicine
Chief, Vascular Surgery, Yale-New Haven Hospital