HealthEast Care System Announces Creation of National Brain Aneurysm Center

New focus and web site aimed at treating, informing patients with unruptured aneurysms

Over the past six years, neurovascular surgeon Eric Nussbaum, MD, and interventional neuroradiologist Michael Madison, MD, performed more brain aneurysm surgeries than nearly every hospital in the country. Since 2002, the National Brain Aneurysm Center has treated more than 2,000 brain aneurysms - roughly 350 a year - establishing a sub-specialty focus in one of the more complex and delicate surgical fields.

It is estimated that one in 20 people have a brain aneurysm or vascular malformation. In the past, most didn't know they had one until it ruptured. Today, thanks to advanced technology like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), more and more people are learning in advance that they have an aneurysm and the surgical options to repair one.

The National Brain Aneurysm Center is a unique collaboration of surgical skill and patient-centered teamwork. While most hospitals and healthcare systems talk about a team approach to care, Drs. Nussbaum and Madison collaborate on each brain aneurysm patient, even operating together to ensure the best outcomes. For example, when Dr. Nussbaum performs an open-skull procedure to place a titanium clip on the aneurysm, Dr. Madison will thread a tiny camera up through an artery in the groin to the brain to take a photo of the finished product. "This way we know before we close the patient that we have been successful," Dr. Madison said.

The National Brain Aneurysm Center is located at St. Joseph's Hospital and is a Joint Commission nationally certified primary stroke center, the first in St. Paul. With neurologists, specialized neurological nursing staff and a state-of-the-art neurovascular intensive care unit, the center provides a full range of neurological care to patients in the area. In the past few years, treating aneurysms has become about 70 percent of Dr. Nussbaum's practice, leading to exceptional outcomes.

Surgical complication rates for unruptured aneurysms are around 1.6 percent at the National Brain Aneurysm Center, compared with 10 percent nationally. Mortality rates for Dr. Nussbaum are 0.03 percent, compared with 4 percent nationally. But Dr. Nussbaum knows patients want more than just statistics.

"We treat a high volume of patients and so we know we can treat your quality of life, not just your aneurysm," he said. "A patient diagnosed with a brain aneurysm should ask their surgeon how many surgeries he does in a year. What are the outcomes? What are the complications? This is a very specific surgery and you want someone who performs 200 a year more than someone who performs 20 a year."

While the National Brain Aneurysm Center was created to improve patient care, its model also lowers the cost of care through decreased complications, shorter lengths of stay and improved mortality rates. Combined with their expertise in stroke care, The National Brain Aneurysm Center and www.brainaneurysmcenter.org give patients hope for the best possible outcomes and care.

To learn more, go to www.brainaneurysmcenter.org web site.