Dr. Michel S. Makaroun elected president of SVS

CHICAGO, Ill., July 1, 2018 – Vascular surgeon Dr. Michel S. Makaroun was elected president of the Society for Vascular Surgery at its annual meeting in June. He will serve in this role for one year. Dr. Makaroun is a professor and chair of vascular surgery and of clinical and translational science at the University of Pittsburgh and co-director of UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute. He has served as SVS president-elect for the previous 12 months.

Is open aortic aneurysm repair becoming an endangered art?

With the advent of endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) over the past several decades, along with more recent technical advances that now allow for more complex aneurysms to be treated with branched-fenestrated devices, it is not surprising that the rate of open AAA repair is declining. The important question now is, has this decline become so drastic that open AAA can no longer serve as a relevant marker for hospital quality, or program discrimination for trainees?

When is surgery right for the elderly?

[[{"fid":"1792","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","alignment":"","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":false,"field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":false},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"default","alignment":"","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":false,"field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":false},"2":{"format":"default","alignment":"","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":false,"field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":false}},"attributes":{"height":1292,"width":2000,"style":"height: 81px; width: 125px; float: left; margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;","class":"media-element file-default","data-delta":"2"}}]]How do surgeons know when an elderly person is strong enough to withstand the stress of surgery? It's not an exact science to determine "frailty," but a simple test may help.