Vascular and Endovascular Surgery Research

Pioneering Research in Vascular and Endovascular Innovation

The Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery’s active research program within the CardioVascular Institute includes extensive clinical research focused on patient outcomes and new technologies, as well as NIH-funded basic science research.

Clinical Research

The Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery conducts a very active clinical research program, among the most prolific vascular clinical trial sites in the world, providing patients with expanded treatment options, including:

• Outcome studies of arterial reconstructive surgery, including the ultimate well-being and independence of patients, prevention of amputation and stroke, the risks and benefits of all procedures
• Wound healing agents and technology, especially for problems related to the foot in diabetes
• Studies of the microcirculation as affected by diabetes, menopause, estrogen and estrogen replacement theory
• Studies of endovascular technology, such as stent grafts and the use of angioscopy during surgical procedures

Basic Research

The basic science research program has been funded by the NIH for more than 20 years, including programs such as:

• Determining the mechanisms that lead to failure of some bypass grafts. This work has led to the identification of genes that play an important role in the response of arteries to an injury.
• Improving the methods used to prepare and handle vein grafts in the operating room.
• Development of surfaces that are resistant to infection.
• Identification of blood flow disturbances leading to atherosclerosis and failure of arterial bypass grafts.

Aortic Center Research

The Aortic Center is a national leader in outcomes research for aortic conditions. Work by our faculty is routinely published in high impact journals including The Journal of the American Medical Association, Circulation and The New England Journal of Medicine. The Aortic Center is also a participant in the Vascular Quality Initiative, a multidisciplinary group of physicians, data managers and healthcare quality professionals focused on improving care through data collection and analysis. 

BIDMC’s Aortic Center is working to develop new technology to improve surgical treatment. This includes a device to enable surgeons to more easily view surgical images during a procedure, as well as angio-ultrasound that will allow surgeons to visualize leg vessels through external ultrasound.

The Aortic Center participates in clinical trials to expand the clinical knowledge base on the use of the HeliFX Aortic Securement System and investigate the safety and effectiveness of the Relay PRO Thoracic Stent Grafts in subjects with aneurysms (TAA) and penetrating ulcers (PAU) within the descending thoracic aorta.

The center is also evaluating the safety and efficacy of physician-modified endovascular grafts (PMEG) in the treatment of complex thoraco-abdominal aortic pathology.