Vascular Care

Your vascular system, also known as your circulatory system, is the network of vessels and tissues that supply your body with blood, oxygen and lymph—a clear fluid made of white blood cells. That means a problem in your vascular system can quickly affect your organs, including your heart. Trust the experts at UNC Medical Center to diagnose and treat vascular conditions to keep you in your best health.

Top-Quality, Comprehensive Vascular Care

Choose UNC Medical Center vascular specialists for comprehensive care of all your vascular conditions. We get to know you. We talk to you about your condition and treatment options, some you can’t get anywhere else, to provide you with the best possible outcome.

Find board-certified vascular surgeons who hold the experience and skills to ensure you receive high-quality care. As part of the Society for Vascular Surgery Vascular Quality Initiative^®, a national network of vascular quality improvement groups, UNC Medical Center collects data to improve the quality, safety, effectiveness and cost of your vascular care.

Vascular Conditions We Treat

At UNC Medical Center, you and your doctor can select innovative treatments for the full spectrum of conditions affecting your arteries and veins, including:

• Aortic disease and aneurysms
• Carotid artery disease (CAD)
• Peripheral arterial disease (PAD)
• Mesenteric artery ischemia – A narrowing of the arteries that carry blood to your intestines
• Renovascular hypertension (RVHT) – High blood pressure due to narrowing of the arteries that carry blood to the kidneys
• Vascular malformations
• Vein conditions
  
  • Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) – A blood clot that forms in a vein, usually in the leg
  • Varicose veins – Painful, bulging veins
  • Spider veins – Small veins that look like a web under the skin
  • Venous insufficiency – A condition in which veins have difficulty sending blood from the legs back to the heart

Vascular Procedures and Treatments

If conservative measures are appropriate for your vascular condition, we’ll advise you on lifestyle changes or prescribe medications that can treat your condition. If you need more advanced care, you’ll be able to take advantage of the newest and most technologically advanced endovascular and surgical treatments at UNC Medical Center, including:

• Angioplasty stenting – A procedure that uses a medical balloon to open a blocked artery and improve blood flow, then places a small mesh tube called a stent in a blood vessel to keep it open
• Endarterectomy (including carotid endarterectomy) – Surgery to remove plaque from a narrow or blocked artery and restore blood flow
• Endovascular stent graft – Inserting a tube of special fabric supported by a stent into an artery to support a weak spot and treat an aneurysm
• Surgical aneurysm repair – Repairing or removing an aneurysm through an incision in your skin
• Surgical bypass – Using a graft (a blood vessel from your body or a plastic tube) that reroutes your blood flow to avoid a blocked artery
• Venous access, including dialysis access – A procedure that creates a safe and efficient entryway into your bloodstream
• Thrombolytic therapy – Using a catheter and/or injected medication to break up clots in your blood vessels
• Treatments for varicose and spider veins

Leading the Way in New Treatments

When you get vascular care at UNC Medical Center, you benefit from the expertise and groundbreaking treatments and procedures available only at an academic medical center. If you qualify for a clinical trial—a test of a drug or medical device in people—you’ll have the opportunity to treat your disease with the latest medications, devices or technologies.