All smiles after Endovascular Aneurysm Repair

You know something is wrong when Charles Johnson isn't telling a joke.

The 76-year-old retired truck driver is famous for cutting up and making people smile. A few months ago, he was not in the mood.

He was fatigued, had a lot of abdominal pain, and had no appetite. A CT scan discovered an abdominal aneurysm, a bulge of the aorta, the main blood vessel that pumps blood from the heart to the rest of the body. It can be life-threatening if it bursts or starts bleeding.

Charles and his wife, Susie, saw Dr. Jorge Miranda, a vascular surgeon at Baylor College of Medicine practicing at St Luke's Health - Sugar Land Hospital. Dr. Miranda took note of Charles’s history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a lung condition that made traditional surgery too risky.

"Mr. Johnson's abdominal aortic aneurysm was dilated, posing a high risk of rupture," Dr. Miranda recalled. "Because of his COPD, he was not a candidate for an open procedure. Instead, we repaired the aneurysm endovascularly by inserting a stent into his aorta through a catheter inserted through a small incision in his groin. The stent reinforced the weakened aortic wall to prevent rupture.”

It worked. Dr. Miranda, Dr. Gilani, and their team at St. Luke’s-Sugar Land performed the procedure in an hour and a half, leaving just two small incisions near the groin, which healed quickly.

"I immediately felt better," Charles said recently. "I didn't feel a thing. I'm moving around pretty good for somebody with COPD."

Mr. Johnson was the first patient at St. Luke’s-Sugar Land to undergo an Endovascular Aneurysm Repair (EVAR), cutting-edge technology requiring a specialized team.

"EVAR is an advanced procedure requiring a high level of expertise that will benefit many patients in the Sugar Land area," Dr. Miranda said.

Charles was discharged the next day, but he left the nursing staff in stitches, teasing them during his overnight stay.

"The care they gave me made me feel like I was president of the United States! They provided excellent care. If I know anyone who needs that kind of surgery, I highly recommend St. Luke’s Health.”