New Surgery Suite Puts UAMS at Forefront of Vascular Treatments

UAMS' well-regarded Vascular Center, under the direction of John Eidt, M.D., has an Endovascular Surgery Suite that is an Arkansas first. The suite provides Dr. Eidt's surgery team with the most advanced equipment available for the very latest minimally invasive treatments.

The $1.5 million surgery suite includes new medical imaging technology, such as clear 3-D pictures and low-dose X-ray equipment for numerous minimally invasive operations.

With Eidt at the helm, UAMS is among a handful of hospitals nationally leading the move to endovascular surgery.

"We now have ideal imaging and an ideal operating room," said Dr. Eidt, professor of surgery and radiology, and division director of the College of Medicine’s Department of Vascular Surgery. "This is a statewide resource, and there's nothing else like it in Arkansas." The Department of Vascular Surgery also has added staff, including two vascular surgeons, giving the department a total of four. "We've never had a better combination of people and facilities," he said.

The operating suite is designed for imaging-intensive, catheter-based endovascular techniques and "hybrid" procedures combining traditional surgical interventions and the newer endovascular methods. "With our new endovascular operating suite we will be able to expand our treatment of carotid artery disease, abdominal aortic aneurysms and peripheral arterial disease," he said. Endovascular treatments are fast replacing traditional open-surgical methods that for years have been the gold standard of treatment. These exciting new laparoscopic procedures are significantly reducing hospital stays, pain and recovery time for patients. Many are done on an outpatient basis.

"Vascular surgery has changed dramatically in recent years, particularly with the growth of endovascular surgery and the types of endovascular devices available to treat arterial and venous disorders," Dr. Eidt said. "New technology may make some types of conventional vascular surgery obsolete."

For more information about vascular services at UAMS, please call 501-686-6176.