Page 7 - Martin Downs Bulletin - February '24

Martin Downs, Page 7

Cleveland CliniC MarTin healTh news

Surviving Thoracic Aortic Weakened And Torn An aortic dissection occurs when a partial thickness tear
The elasticity of the aortic
in the inner wall allows the layers to separate and blood to
Disease: Don’t Leave It To wall, which is made up of pool between them. This can decrease blood flow to organs,
cause an aneurysm to form, or lead to an abrupt rupture.
three layers, allows it to
Chance stretch as it fills with blood Treating Aortic Disease
from the heart. Aneurysms When and how to treat an aortic aneurysm or dissection
The candy cane-shaped aorta is the largest artery in the body. are formed when the wall will depend on its size and location. “Dissections in the
It has a very important job as the main conduit for oxygen-rich weakens and balloons out. ascending aorta closer to the heart require urgent surgery,
blood traveling from the heart to the rest of the body. If an aneurysm becomes too while tears further from the heart in the descending aorta
About the width of a large garden hose, the aorta starts at large, it can rupture and cause may not,” Savage explains.
the heart, ascends up to form an arch and then descends through life-threatening bleeding. Smaller aneurysms and tears may be monitored for years
the chest into the abdomen. The section above the diaphragm, “The problem with an before requiring surgery. This watchful waiting approach will
called the thoracic aorta, supplies blood to the head, arms and aortic aneurysm is that your include periodic imaging tests, usually every six to 12 months,
organs in the chest cavity. first symptom is often your and strict blood pressure management.
“Thoracic aortic disease is frequently overlooked because it last,” says Dr. Savage, who Edward Savage, M.D. If surgery is deemed necessary, there are two options
develops slowly and silently, and often without symptoms,” says notes they are typically depending on the location of the aneurysm. The diseased portion
Cleveland Clinic Martin Health cardiothoracic surgeon Edward discovered by chance in the course of imaging tests for of the aorta can be replaced with a fabric tube called a graft
Savage, M.D., site director, Heart Vascular Thoracic Center. other conditions. during open surgery. Alternatively, a stent graft, which is a fabric
tube supported by a metal wire scaffold, can be placed inside
the aorta using a minimally invasive, catheter-based approach.
Staying Healthy
About 20 percent of patients with a thoracic aortic aneurysm
or dissection have a family history of aortic disease. Other risk
factors include age, a history of smoking, high blood pressure
and atherosclerosis, as well as certain genetic conditions like
Marfan syndrome.
“In addition to following a heart healthy lifestyle to reduce
your risk, first degree relatives of individuals with aortic
disease, such as children and siblings, should be screened,”
adds Savage.
To make an appointment with a cardiovascular specialist at
Cleveland Clinic in Florida, please call (877) 463-2010 or visit
ClevelandClinicFlorida.org/Heart to learn more.

Club news

Spunky Grandmothers Meet
Martin County Genealogical

Society

Tales about our ancestral past, always interesting, can
reveal a lot about our families and our present selves. At
the Martin County Genealogical Society’s (MCGS) March
meeting, in a presentation titled “We’re Talking About
Our Spunky Grandmothers,” three MCGS members,
Evi Eskin, Cindy Todd and Lisa Tompson, will share
fascinating stories about their grandmothers. Marked by
challenges, unknowns, determination and perseverance,
these women included a fille de roi who answered King
Louis XIV’s call to colonize New France, an educator
who opened the first orphanage for African Americans
in the South, and a widow who kept the family business
despite German inheritance laws.
Free and open to the public, the meeting will be at the
Blake Library, 2351 S.E. Monterey Road in Stuart, from
1 to 3 p.m., Friday, March 15. For more information, go
to mcgsfl.org/events.
The Martin County Genealogical Society offers a
variety of services at the Genealogy Room in the Blake
Library including an extensive research library, access to
several genealogy websites and assistance from MCGS
volunteers. For more information about membership,
activities and services go to mcgsfl.org.

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