WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

THERE is a v ery small risk of the general complications associated with surgery, such as bleeding, infec tion and deep vein thrombosis.

ALSO, there a 1-2 per cent risk of mismatch between the s tent’s openings and the patient’s blood vessels, so the surgeon has to plan an alternative. Commenting on the ne w technique, Mike Knapton, associate medical direc tor at the British Heart F oundation, says: ‘By tailoring the stent to individ- uals, doc tors are also able to repair the aorta without com - promising blood flo w to the arteries that branch off into the abdomen, including the renal arteries which supply blood to the kidneys.

‘This new stent allows the aorta to be repaired b y inserting a stent into the aorta through an artery in the groin. This is much less tr aumatic for the patient than the tr aditional surgical method of repair, which requires a major abdomen operation.