Doctors at Healthway Hospitals Perform Landmark Fenestrated Endovascular Aortic Repair Surgery in Goa

Doctors at Healthway Hospitals Perform Landmark Fenestrated Endovascular Aortic Repair Surgery in Goa

Doctors at Healthway Hospitals Perform Landmark Fenestrated Endovascular Aortic Repair Surgery in Goa

~ The life-saving procedure was the first of its kind to be performed in a non-government health facility in Goa.

Panaji, August 2025 – In a landmark achievement for Goa’s private healthcare sector, doctors at Healthway Hospitals, Old Goa, have successfully performed a fenestrated endovascular aortic repair (FEVAR) to treat a patient with a juxtarenal aortic aneurysm, a form of swelling of the aorta, the body’s largest artery. The case is the first of its kind to be performed at a private hospital in the state, and the second case recorded in Goa.

The patient’s aneurysm, located dangerously close to the renal arteries, was more than five cm in diameter, which was progressively increasing in size, heightening the risk of a fatal rupture. Aortic aneurysms occur when the aortic wall weakens and dilates permanently. While they are relatively common in Goa, most cases are treated through endovascular techniques ( minimally invasive procedure).

The minimally invasive procedure involved small incisions in the groin and arm to insert catheters and guidewires under fluoroscopic guidance. A customised fenestrated stent graft was then positioned to align the openings with the renal arteries. Covered stents were placed through these openings to maintain blood supply. A final angiography confirmed successful exclusion of the aneurysm and restoration of normal blood flow before the incisions were closed.

Without access to endovascular technology, the alternative would have been open surgical repair, which carries far greater risk. “The challenging aspect of this procedure was to create fenestrations (surgically created openings). Our other option was to order a Customised Device (CMD), which takes four to six weeks to arrive from Australia and is expensive. Given the aneurysm’s rapid growth, the wait was not an option,” said Dr Pawan Kumar, senior interventional radiologist at Healthway Hospitals, Old Goa.

“A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies in Asian populations, including India, found an overall abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) prevalence of 1.30 percent with some Indian tertiary care studies reporting rates as high as 4.8 percent in coronary artery disease patients,” said Dr Girish Warawdekar, a leading interventional radiologist at Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai, who was part of the landmark surgery.

Risk factors for aortic aneurysms include advanced aging (60+), smoking, gender (men are more susceptible), family history, hypertension, atherosclerosis, dyslipidaemia, genetic disorders such as Marfan syndrome, diabetes, arterial inflammation, untreated infection and trauma.

The surgical team for this procedure included Dr Girish Warawdekar and Dr Pankaj Patel, from Lilavati Hospital, Mumbai, Dr Pawan Kumar, senior interventional radiologist at Healthway along with Dr Pankaj Naik, Dr Nikhil Bhomkar (anaesthetist), Dr Sanjeev Juwarkar (anaesthesiologist), Dr Glory Katiyar (radiologist) and Dr Jannita Kundaikar
(general and laparoscopic surgeon) from Heathway Hospitals, Old Goa, with assistance from the hospital’s cath lab technicians and nursing team.

This case underscores the importance of early diagnosis, timely intervention and advanced endovascular expertise in treating complex aneurysms located near vital arteries.

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Dr Girish Warawdekar and Dr Pankaj Patel, from Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai and Dr Pawan Kumar, from Healthway Hospitals, Old Goa, the doctors behind the successful landmark Fenestrated Endovascular Aortic Repair (FEVAR) surgery.