Peripheral arterial disease, also called arteritis or arteriopathy obliterans, is a serious condition that occurs most often in the legs, as a result of calcium or cholesterol deposits on the arteries, which, over time, lead to narrowing and even obstruction complete blood vessels. Thus, the blood flow no longer circulates properly or is blocked.
The condition causes discomfort or pain when walking even after a small number of steps, as well as tingling and numbness in the legs. In advanced stages, there may be pallor or cyanosis of the skin, tingling, a feeling of “cold feet” and open wounds that are difficult to heal and can easily become infected. Without proper treatment, it can lead to gangrene and even amputation.
Maria, 80 years old, had for two years very severe pain in her legs, which occurred while walking and prevented her from carrying out her daily activities. With over 40 years of experience as a nurse, the woman thought it might be something serious and went to a cardiologist. The doctor recommended him to do a Doppler ultrasound, so he made an appointment to do the investigation at SANADOR. After the ultrasound, the doctor told him that he had arteritis and that he needed to do an arteriography.
Initially, Maria refused. But he got scared when he found out that, otherwise, he risks losing his toes. So, after arteriography and an angio-CT examination, the diagnosis of significant calcium and cholesterol deposits at the arterial level was confirmed. The cardiologist advised her to go for treatment at the SANADOR Clinical Hospital, to Dr. Rodica Niculescu, primary cardiologist, head of the Department of Interventional Cardiology at SANADOR.
In the case of Maria, Dr. Rodica Niculescu opted for a modern interventional cardiology procedure – atherectomy with the Jetstream system for arteriopathy obliterans, minimally invasive intervention through which calcium and cholesterol deposits were destroyed. In addition to the atherectomy, the patient was also fitted with a stent, through a peripheral angioplasty procedure.
The intervention went smoothly and was completed successfully. The patient recovered easily, and currently she feels very well, comes regularly for check-ups and complies with all medical indications.
At SANADOR, patients have access to specialized consultations and specific investigations, carried out with high-performance equipment, for the correct diagnosis of cardiovascular conditions. Interventional cardiology interventions, including atherectomy with the Jetsteam system, are performed under maximum safety conditions in the Catheterism Laboratory of the SANADOR Clinical Hospital, the only one in Romania equipped with two Philips Azurion 7 angiographs, of the latest generation. The procedures are performed by cardiologists superspecialized in interventional cardiology, with the help of specialists in anesthesia and intensive care, cardiovascular surgery, vascular surgery, cardiology, echocardiography and medical imaging.
