Safe, Efficient and Complex Care Allows Heart Patient to Return Home

Avelino’s multiple heart conditions were putting his life at risk. Thanks to the safe, efficient, and complex care provided, he is now well and home with his family.

When Avelino started experiencing severe chest pain and difficulty breathing, his family rushed him to the hospital. Doctors confirmed that he was having a heart attack.

Tests revealed that Avelino had several complex heart problems, including blockages in his arteries, a large aneurysm of his aorta and that he was at risk of a tear of the aorta. Such conditions are usually treated with surgery, but it is high-risk.

Doctors decided that Avelino was too sick to undergo traditional surgery – but without intervention, he wouldn’t make it.

The team from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute met to discuss an alternative, non-surgical approach to address such a complex case. They decided to perform a series of minimally invasive procedures, including accessing the aorta through a small incision in the artery and using state-of-the-art laser technology to unblock the arteries.

Cases such as Avelino’s, which are extremely complex and high-risk, benefit from a coordinated, multidisciplinary approach, where teams work together to decide the safest treatment options, supported by the most advanced medical equipment.

Avelino’s procedure went extremely well and following a period of rehabilitation, he was able to safely return home to his family.