Type of Surgery
Information
Last updated: 11/24/2009
Surgery to create an arteriovenous fistula is usually conducted using a local anesthetic, injected at the site of the proposed fistula. The procedure is performed in a hospital or one-day surgery center and can usually be performed on an outpatient...
basis if the patient is not already hospitalized. After cleaning and sterilizing the site, the surgeon will make a small incision in the forearm sufficient to allow the permanent joining together of a vein and an artery in the arm. The blood vessels will be appropriately blocked to stop blood flow for the procedure and incisions will be made to join them. Silk sutures, just as those used in other types of surgical incisions, will be used to close incised areas as needed after the vein and artery have been joined. Once joined, blood flow will increase, the vein will become thicker, and over a period of months the connection will become strong and develop into the fistula that will allow permanent vascular access.
Advertisement
This narrated 3D animation shows how a glaucoma surgery is performed, specifically a trabeculectomy. While the video is incredibly detailed and thorough, it does contain anatomical, surgical, and medical terms throughout. Glaucoma is a disease in which too much fluid and, by extension, pressure builds up inside the eye. A trabeculectomy is one type of glaucoma surgery that improves fluid outflow from the eye and reduces intraocular (inside the eye) pressure.
Search
Other Information
An arteriovenous fistula is an abnormal connection or passageway between an artery and a vein. It may be congenital, surgically created for hemodialysis treatments, or acquired due to pathologic process, such as trauma or erosion of an arterial aneurysm.
Other Information
They've become more prevalent since the heart surgery.
-Skip Rutherford
Find a Qualified Specialist
Looking for a specialist?
Please enter your zip code.