Vascular Disease & Treatment

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The MUSC Health Heart & Vascular Center

If you stretched out every blood vessel in your body, your vascular system would extend for almost 100,000 miles. Those arteries, veins and capillaries carry blood to and from your heart and every part of your body. When vascular disease interferes with your blood vessels, the damage can cause heart attacks, strokes and other life- and limb-threatening problems.

The vascular disease experts at MUSC Health’s Heart & Vascular Center expertly perform a full range of procedures to treat vascular disease. Our treatment options range from minimally invasive endovascular approaches to open surgeries. With our colleagues at MUSC Children’s Health, we care for people across the spectrum of life, from prenatal and pediatric care through all stages of adulthood.

Why choose MUSC Health for your vascular disease care?

At MUSC Health, we provide both the expertise and the technology to quickly and effectively diagnose and treat vascular problems.
When you come to us for vascular disease care, you benefit from:

Expert diagnosis: Our team has South Carolina’s most extensive experience with both straightforward and complex heart and vascular interventions. That means you get a fast, accurate diagnosis. Our diagnostic tools include angiogram (X-ray inside your blood vessels) and duplex ultrasound (using sound waves to measure blood flow). We also use computed tomography angiography (CTA) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), which deliver a 3D view inside your blood vessels.

The latest treatments: As the state’s only medical research institution, we offer the best available treatments for vascular disease. Our extensive clinical trials program can give access to the latest treatments that aren’t available everywhere. Learn about clinical trials.

Trusted specialists: U.S. News & World Report ranks MUSC Health the No. 1 hospital in South Carolina. The same measure ranks us as high-performing in abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, aortic valve surgery and heart bypass surgery.

Collaborative care: As the only academic health center in South Carolina, we offer comprehensive care from a group of providers with knowledge and skill in the latest treatments and procedures. Our vascular disease specialists work with experts from our Aortic Center and Advanced Heart Failure Program. Together, they develop a treatment plan tailored to your unique heart structure and vascular condition.

Designated Stroke Center: Blood clots can break loose and block blood flow to your brain, causing a stroke. Our vascular team coordinates your care as needed with MUSC Health’s Comprehensive Stroke Center.

Understanding your treatment options for vascular disease.

Our vascular team has extensive expertise in performing minimally invasive procedures. These options can speed your recovery and result in less pain and infection risk. We were the first in the state to offer minimally invasive abdominal aortic stent grafts for aortic aneurysms. Learn more about endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR).

In our dedicated hybrid operating rooms, surgical teams perform both catheter and surgical procedures. Our program delivers a complete range of the most advanced treatments for all types of vascular disease, including:

Catheterization and angioplasty: Your doctor guides a balloon-tipped catheter (thin tube) through an artery in your arm or leg. At the blocked or narrowed part, your doctor inflates the balloon to open the passage, then deflates and removes the catheter. See more about cardiac catheterization.
Revascularization and endarterectomy: Vascular surgeons at MUSC Health repair and reroute blood flow and remove plaque (fatty) buildups from blood vessels. Learn more about vascular surgery.
Peripheral vessel atherectomy: Your doctor uses a catheter to destroy plaque that has built up inside of a blood vessel. Your doctor may use this treatment if you have peripheral artery disease (PAD). Read more about PAD treatment,
Thrombolytic therapy: A specialist administers medications to dissolve blood clots that are blocking major arteries or veins. This treatment is useful for conditions like heart attacks, strokes, acute limb ischemia and deep vein thrombosis.
Advanced care for peripheral artery disease (PAD): Peripheral artery disease restricts blood flow to your organs and limbs. Many people do not know they have PAD or its severe form, limb ischemia, until they have a stroke or a ruptured aneurysm. Our $99 Peripheral Artery Disease Screenings can detect the condition. When you know, you can make lifestyle modifications and start treatment.