MetroWest Medical Center’s Vascular Medicine Laboratory offers both diagnostic and therapeutic services for a wide variety of vascular conditions. Whether it’s a blockage in a leg artery causing pain while walking or a wound that won’t
heal, our team of experts has the expertise and state-of-the-art technology to get you on the fast track to recovery.
Why Choose MetroWest?
Our skilled technologists undergo special training to perform a variety of vascular laboratory ultrasound tests. These tests can diagnose blockages in arteries located in the neck, kidneys, abdomen, legs and aorta. Such testing allows your physician to
make treatment decisions and prevent serious health problems.
Some of the vascular lab tests and procedures we offer include:
Carotid duplex scan: Captures images of the blood flow in the carotid arteries which carry blood to your brain. Blockages in these vessels are a common cause of strokes.
Venous duplex scan: To assess the blood flow in the veins for clots which can travel to your lungs and cause a life threatening pulmonary embolism.
Venous reflux: Evaluates for “backwards” blood flow in the legs, often with visible varicose veins, which can your legs to swell, feel heavy and/or ache.
Duplex scan of native legs arterial: Obtains images of the blood flow in the leg arteries. Blockages here can cause buttock, thigh or calf pain with walking.
Vein mapping: Helps examine the size and patency of superficial veins before they are used for bypass surgery.
Abdominal duplex scan: An ultrasound test to assess for an aneurysm in the aorta or for blockages in the branch vessels that supply the kidneys and intestines.
Segmental Doppler (pressures and pulse volume recording): Measures arterial circulation in either the arm of the legs by using blood pressure cuffs.
Invasive vascular medicine: Should any of your noninvasive tests reveal significant abnormalities, one of our vascular experts may suggest an invasive test called an angiogram. This allows direct visualization of the arteries in the arms, legs
or aorta. Many times the surgeons are able to open blockages through the catheters using stents to improve blood flow.
Our vascular surgeons are also skilled in treating aortic aneurysms through similar small tubes inserted into the large artery in the groin, as opposed to an open surgical procedure. This reduces both the length of your hospital stay as well as your recovery
time.
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