A leading-edge surgical procedure to repair
\ncollapsed airways, the first of its kind to
\nbe performed in Upstate New York, was recently
\ncompleted at Albany Medical Center.<\/p>\n
The surgery, designed to alleviate the
\nchronic coughing and breathing problems
\nthat accompany a collapsing airway, was
\nperformed by thoracic surgeon Dr. Charles
\nBakhos, who reinforced the back wall of the
\npatient’s trachea with mesh to stabilize the
\nairway and minimize the possibility of continued
\ncollapse, officials at Albany Med said.<\/p>\n
Dr. Bakhos called collapsing airways an
\nunder-recognized condition that is “very
\nfrustrating and debilitating for patients,
\nlike having bronchitis or pneumonia that
\nnever goes away.” The condition occurs in
\n5-10 percent of patients with significant
\nrespiratory diseases.<\/p>\n
The surgical placement of mesh, or tracheoplasty,
\nis a promising new procedure
\nthat offers certain patients a longer-term
\nsolution than most common treatments, Bakhos
\nsaid. He hopes to make the procedure
\nmore readily available in the Capital Region.<\/p>\n
The condition of collapsing airway, known
\nas tracheobronchomalacia, is first treated
\nwith inhalers, medications to loosen up
\nsecretions and antibiotics in the presence
\nof an infection. Placement of a stent in the
\nairway can be performed on patients who
\ndon’t respond to medical treatment or whose quality of life is especially compromised.
\nStenting, however, can only be temporary,
\nas it can lead to serious complications over
\nthe long run, Bakhos said.<\/p>\n
Colonie resident Tony Cleghorn, 54, Bakhos’s
\nfirst patient in the area, is certainly
\ngrateful for his efforts. “Most of my adult life
\nI’ve had trouble breathing,” said Cleghorn,
\na computer programmer. “I’d been to all
\nkinds of doctors–allergists, pulmonologists,
\nrespiratory specialists. Everyone, myself included,
\nhas been trying to figure this out. Dr.
\nBakhos finally identified what was wrong.”<\/p>\n
Cleghorn said, “I’m still healing, but I feel
\na whole lot better. I can breathe in and out
\nmuch more easily. I consider Dr. Bakhos a
\nmiracle worker. He finally solved a problem
\nI’ve been fighting for years.”<\/p>\n
Albany Medical Center, northeastern New
\nYork’s only academic health sciences center,
\nis one of the largest private employers in the
\nCapital Region. It incorporates the 734-bed
\nAlbany Medical Center Hospital, which offers
\nthe widest range of medical and surgical services
\nin the region, and the Albany Medical
\nCollege, which trains the next generation
\nof doctors, scientists and other health care
\nprofessionals, and also includes a biomedical
\nresearch enterprise and the region’s
\nlargest physicians practice with more than
\n450 doctors. For more information: www.amc.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A leading-edge surgical procedure to repair collapsed airways, the first of its kind to be performed in Upstate New York, was recently completed at Albany Medical Center. The surgery, designed to alleviate the chronic coughing and breathing problems that…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[57,82],"class_list":["post-16991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news","tag-business-news","tag-healthcare"],"yoast_head":"\r\n