Medcare Hospital Al Safa has introduced SPUR Retrievable Scaffold Therapy, becoming the first hospital in Dubai to use it for patients with severely narrowed or blocked arteries below the knee.

For patients with advanced circulation problems, particularly those with diabetes, restoring blood flow to the foot can be critical to saving the limb. When the arteries below the knee become severely narrowed or blocked, wounds may fail to heal. Without sufficient blood supply, infection and tissue damage can progress and, in advanced cases, may ultimately lead to amputation.

SPUR offers a new approach to treating these challenging small arteries. The minimally invasive device temporarily supports the artery during treatment, helping to improve the result after the blocked or narrowed vessel has been opened. At the end of the procedure, the scaffold is completely retrieved, leaving no permanent metal implant behind.

Leave-nothing-behind approach

This “leave-nothing-behind” approach is particularly valuable in the small and often heavily diseased arteries below the knee, while preserving future treatment options if the patient requires another intervention. 

The need for advanced limb-salvage treatment is particularly relevant in the UAE, where diabetes is common and represents an important risk factor for peripheral arterial disease and diabetic foot complications. The International Diabetes Federation estimates an age-standardised diabetes prevalence of approximately 20.7% among UAE adults aged 20–79.

Commenting, Bilal Al Soweissi, COO of Medcare Hospital Al Safa, said: “Introducing SPUR therapy at Medcare Hospital Al Safa gives patients with complex below-the-knee arterial disease access to another advanced treatment option here in Dubai. This is particularly important for patients with diabetic foot wounds, where timely restoration of blood flow can play a major role in wound healing and limb preservation.”

Restoring blood flow

Dr Saher Arour, Consultant Vascular Surgeon at Medcare Hospital Al Safa and the first surgeon in Dubai to perform the procedure, explained: “When a foot wound does not heal because of poor circulation, restoring blood flow can make the difference between progressive tissue loss and giving the foot a chance to heal. 

“The arteries below the knee are small and frequently affected by severe calcification, particularly in patients with diabetes. Balloon angioplasty can reopen these arteries, but some vessels tend to recoil after the balloon is removed. SPUR® provides temporary support to the artery during treatment and is then completely removed. We therefore gain the benefit of temporary scaffolding without leaving a permanent implant behind.”

Medcare’s first patient treated with this technology was a 71-year-old Emirati woman suffering from tissue loss caused by severely reduced blood flow to the foot. The narrowed below-the-knee artery was successfully reopened, SPUR therapy was performed, and the device was completely retrieved at the end of treatment. Follow-up imaging demonstrated improved blood flow to the foot without immediate procedural complications. The wound subsequently continued to improve, and the limb was preserved.—TradeArabia News Service