Vascular Surgery
Vascular Surgery
Vascular Services deal with disorders of the arteries and veins. Some patients with arterial disease may have narrowed or blocked arteries restricting the flow of blood to the legs, arms or brain. Others have widened arteries (aneurysms) which may burst causing sudden blood loss. Patients with venous disease may have varicose veins, leg ulcers or complications after a deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
The Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital Vascular Unit provides comprehensive vascular services for around 1 million people in Norfolk and the Waveney area. We are part of a vascular network with the James Paget Hospital in Gorleston and Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kings Lynn. Around 40% of vascular problems occur as emergencies. We provide a 24/7 consultant delivered on call service with all emergencies and major surgery undertaken at NNUH. Outpatient clinics, ward based review of inpatients and some daycase surgery take place at JPH and QEH every week.
We are one of the busiest vascular units in England and in the top 5 centres for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) surgery.
Who we are
The department consists of 8 consultant vascular surgeons, 4 specialist nurses and 10 junior doctors. We work very closely with 5 interventional radiologists (details on the Radiology web page). Vascular ultrasound is provided by a team of vascular technologists based in the Vascular Studies department and a team of technicians based at Rouen Road provide the AAA screening service in the community. We are supported by a team of vascular anaesthetists and a high quality intensive care unit and of course an excellent team of secretarial staff.
List of Consultants and Specialist nurses:
Mr Matthew Armon (also covers James Paget Hospital)
Mr Darren Morrow (also covers James Paget Hospital)
Mr Robert Brightwell ( also covers James Paget Hospital)
Mr Mike Delbridge (also covers Cromer and District Hospital)
Mr Wissam Al-Jundi (also covers Queen Elizabeth Hospital)
If you wish to contact one of our consultants/consultant secretaries, please click on the relevant consultant link above and this will take you through to the consultant’s profile with their contact information.
We also have a number of Vascular Nurse Specialists (Jo Wright, Toni Calver & Kerry Brand) and a Vascular Research Nurse (Mandy Burrows), all of whom are contactable on tel. 01603 287844 Monday to Friday 9.00-5.00
Vascular conditions that we deal with:
Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA). We provide open surgery, endovascular and complex fenestrated repair for around 150 patients per year. We run a screening programme to detect AAAs in men over the age of 65 as well as a surveillance programme to follow up patients with small AAA that do not require surgery yet.
Carotid Surgery. Patients who suffer a stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA or mini-stroke) may have a narrowing of the artery which supplies blood to the brain (the carotid artery). An operation to improve the blood flow (carotid endarterectomy) can help to prevent future strokes.
Poor blood supply to the legs and feet. Some people, particularly those who smoke or have diabetes, can develop narrowing or blockages in the blood supply to their legs and feet. This can cause pain on walking, ulcers and eventually endanger the toes or leg. Bypass surgery or endovascular treatment can improve the blood supply making walking easier, helping to heal ulcers and prevent amputation.
Varicose Veins. We provide both open and keyhole surgery (radio-frequency ablation) for patients with varicose veins. Patients must meet the criteria for surgery outlined by NICE in order to be referred for treatment.
Renal Access Surgery. Patients with severe kidney failure will often require an operation that allows them to undergo dialysis. The vascular surgeons perform around 120 of these arterio-venous fistula formations for the renal unit each year.
Amputations. Unfortunately some patients with very severe vascular disease have toes or legs that cannot be saved and need an amputation. We have a specialist amputee nurse who oversees this process and a specialist rehabilitation unit based at Pine Cottage in Norwich.
Uncommon operations : These include Carotid Body Tumour excision, Thoracic outlet decompression, venous stenting and mesenteric bypass surgery. We also deal with bleeding problems arising as a result of trauma or complicating surgery in other specialties.
How to find us
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