CTVS patient and marathon runner, Alejandra Saitas, shared her stroke survival story with Nicole Villalpando from the Austin American Statesman in honor of Stroke Awareness Month to help educate others about the lesser-known symptoms she experienced that took her by surprise. You can read her story below or find it on the Austin American Statesman website here. [...]
May is American Stroke Awareness Month. A stroke takes place when blood vessels that supply oxygen to the brain become blocked or rupture, resulting in damaged brain cells and potentially even permanent brain damage or death. Sadly, stroke continues to be one of the leading causes of death and disability in our country. Imagine not [...]
It’s hard to believe that every six minutes someone dies from a blood clot here in the United States. Blood clots are gel-like masses that form inside your arteries or veins anywhere in the body. Blood clots are unfortunately hard to recognize, but because March is Blood Clot Awareness Month, our team of board-certified cardiothoracic [...]
According to the CDC, every 40 seconds someone suffers from a stroke in the United States. Unfortunately, nearly every four seconds, someone also dies from one. A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is interrupted, causing parts of the body to rapidly weaken and/or stop functioning. At CTVS, stroke awareness and prevention is [...]
It’s been more than five years since CTVS was the first practice in Central Texas to pioneer use of the GORE® TAG® Thoracic Branch Endoprosthesis (TBE) in a pivotal research study for treating aortic disease. More recently, our own board-certified cardiothoracic and vascular surgeons Dr. Mark Felger and Dr. Nicolas Zea became the first physicians [...]
Approximately 37 million Americans are currently living with diabetes - that’s about one out of every ten people. Diabetes is a serious condition that affects the way the body processes food, particularly sugar. If diabetes is not managed properly, it can have severe side effects, especially on the vascular system. The vascular system is the [...]
While stroke is a serious and potentially deadly condition, a Central Texas man is using humor and songwriting as part of his healing process. On November 9, 2021, Chuck King was working as an insurance agent and speaking to one of his coworkers, when suddenly his right side went numb. Knowing something felt off, he [...]
In the United States, someone suffers from a stroke every 40 seconds while someone dies every three to four minutes. Yet, up to 80% of strokes are preventable. CTVS vascular surgeons are using a newer, less invasive procedure, TransCarotid Artery Revascularization (TCAR), that can help prevent a stroke in patients with a known carotid artery [...]
Stephen Galloway is no stranger to a health crisis. In 1991, he was a hazmat engineer who responded to a large, dangerous chemical spill in Galveston. Stephen sustained severe burns and suffered long-term health consequences due to the chemicals that he was exposed to, including painful neuropathy which later led to diabetes and near-blindness. Fast [...]
Last year, stroke cases were down nearly 40% due to fear of going to the hospital amid the pandemic. Yet there were still more than 159,000 deaths reported due to this common and sometimes deadly medical emergency that occurs when blood supply to the brain is blocked or a blood vessel in the brain bursts [...]
