 In March of this year, Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System hosted a national summit on a breakthrough treatment for people with peripheral vascular disease (PVD). Physicians from throughout the nation gathered at our Heart Center to discuss and learn more about CryoPlasty Therapy—a minimally invasive treatment that opens blocked blood vessels in the legs. James Joye, DO, FACC, a cardiologist on staff at Salinas Valley Memorial and one of the pioneers of this technology, performed the procedure on two patients in the cardiac catheterization laboratory with Patrik Zetterlund, MD, FACC.
The procedures were televised live in the Heart Center’s conference room. Visiting physicians from Cleveland Clinic, UCLA, Massachusetts General Hospital, Columbia University Medical Center, Yale New Haven Hospital and approximately 20 other leading medical centers around the country, observed the actual procedures. “Having the ability to view the live procedure while hearing the physicians describe the procedure was a tremendous learning experience,” says Matthew Jenusaitis, President of Boston Scientific’s Peripheral Interventions Division.
Peripheral vascular disease (PVD), occurs when a blood vessel outside the heart becomes blocked by plaque. This can cause severe leg pain, especially during activity. With CryoPlasty, the physician makes a small incision under local anesthesia and inserts a tiny balloon using a thin tube (catheter) into the blood vessel. The balloon is expanded with nitrous oxide, opening it and freezing the surrounding tissue. “With the traditional open surgical procedures, patients spend about five days in the hospital with six weeks of recovery,” explains Dr. Joye. “CryoPlasty is performed on an outpatient basis and requires almost no recovery time. We anticipate that this will become the new gold standard for treatment of people with PVD.”
“It’s exciting that we can offer treatments such as CryoPlasty and access to late-breaking clinical trials to our patients right here in the local community,”  says Patrik Zetterlund, MD, FACC, cardiologist on the medical staff at Salinas Valley Memorial.
John Rundback, MD, Interventional Radiologist, Associate Professor of Radiology and Director of Clinical Research at Columbia University Medical Center, who participated in the summit, said, “The physicians at this hospital represent a prestigious group of individuals and the greatest thought leaders in the field. This is an incredible opportunity for collaboration between vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists and interventional cardiologists. It is also incredible that these types of resources are available at a community hospital. Anything that I can do for a patient at Columbia University Medical Center, I can do at Salinas Valley Memorial. If I ever need a peripheral vascular procedure, I wouldn’t hesitate to choose this hospital.”
“This national summit brought together some of today’s leaders in cardiovascular medicine, including those who practice here at Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System,” says Sam Downing, President/CEO. “We are proud of our medical staff and that our leadership in medical technology has made possible advanced procedures such as CryoPlasty Therapy.” |
New treatment for
Peripheral Vascular Disease