Common Conditions
Aortic Aneurysms: Patient Information Sheet - Operation
Overview
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Aortic Aneurysms Operative
The anaesthetic is given through a needle in the back of your hand and you will fall asleep within seconds. As well as being put to sleep you may have a small tube placed in your back (epidural) to help with pain relief following surgery. Whilst you are asleep tubes will also be inserted into your bladder to drain your urine, into your stomach (via your nose) to stop you feeling sick, and into a vein in your neck for blood pressure measurements and administration of fluid following surgery.
The abdominal area is cleaned with an antiseptic and the site draped with sterile towels. You will have a cut down or across your abdomen and occasionally it is necessary to make a smaller cut in one or both groins. The aorta and particularly the swollen area will be replaced by an artificial blood vessel made of plastic (Dacron). The cuts in the skin are then closed up. My preference is to use 'dissolvable' sutures which are absorbed by the body over a period of a few weeks and therefore do not have to be removed. The entire area is treated with a long acting local anaesthetic which provides excellent pain relief for the first few hours. Sometimes, it is necessary to leave a tube (drain) in the abdominal cavity to help drain any blood or fluids that may collect. The drain is usually removed in 24 to 48 hours.
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