Vascular surgery is a subspecialty of general surgery in which diseases of the vascular system, or arteries and veins, are managed, largely via surgical intervention. The vascular surgeon is trained in the diagnosis and management of diseases affecting all parts of the vascular system except that of the heart and brain. Cardiothoracic surgeons manage surgical disease of the heart and its vessels. Neurosurgeons manage surgical disease of the vessels in the brain (eg intracranial aneurysms).

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Balloon Angioplasty
Angioplasty is the mechanical widening of a narrowed or totally-obstructed blood vessel. These obstructions are often caused by atherosclerosis. The term "angioplasty" is a portmanteau of the words "angio" (from the Latin/Greek word meaning vessel) and "plasticos" (Greek: fit for moulding). Angioplasty has come to include all manner of vascular interventions typically performed in a minimally-invasive or "percutaneous" method.

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Stent Placement
The main purpose of a stent is to counteract significant decreases in vessel or duct diameter by acutely propping open the conduit by a mechanical scaffold or stent. Stents are often used to alleviate diminished blood flow to organs and extremities beyond an obstruction in order to maintain an adequate delivery of oxygenated blood. Although the most common use of stents is in coronary arteries, they are widely used in other natural body conduits, such as central and peripheral arteries and veins, bile ducts, esophagus, colon, trachea or large bronchi, ureters, and urethra.

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Bypass Grafting
Coronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease. Arteries or veins from elsewhere in the patient's body are grafted from the aorta to the coronary arteries to bypass atherosclerotic narrowings and improve the blood supply to the coronary circulation supplying the myocardium (heart muscle). This surgery is usually performed with the heart stopped, necessitating the usage of cardiopulmonary bypass. However, recent researches also shown that this surgery can be done with the heart still beating, by putting stabilizing devices on the heart. The technique was pioneered by Argentine cardiac surgeon René Favaloro at the Cleveland Clinic in the late 1960s. Currently, about 500,000 CABGs are performed in the United States each year.

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Carotid Endarterectomy
Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) is a surgical procedure used to correct carotid stenosis (narrowing of the carotid artery lumen by atheroma), used particularly when this causes medical problems, such as transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) or cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs, strokes). Endarterectomy is the removal of material on the inside (end-) of an artery. Angioplasty and stenting of the carotid artery are undergoing investigation as alternatives to carotid endarterectomy.

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Aneurysm Repair
An aneurysm (or aneurism) is a localized, blood-filled dilation (bulge) of a blood vessel caused by disease or weakening of the vessel wall. Aneurysms most commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain (the circle of Willis) and in the aorta (the main artery coming out of the heart), a so-called aortic aneurysm. The bulge in a blood vessel can burst and lead to death at any time. The larger an aneurysm becomes, the more likely it is to burst. Aneurysms can usually be treated. Historically, the treatment of arterial aneurysms has been surgical intervention, or watchful waiting in combination with control of blood pressure. Recently, endovascular or minimally invasive techniques have been developed for many types of aneurysms. For aortic aneurysms or aneurysms that happen in the vessels that supply blood to the arms, legs, and head (the peripheral vessels), surgery involves replacing the weakened section of the vessel with an artificial tube, called a graft. More recently, covered metallic stent grafts can be inserted through the arteries of the leg and deployed across the aneurysm.

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