thoracic abdominal aneurysm

Im a 73 yr old male, non smoker fit and in good health.
Diagnosed 1/1/2 yrs ago with an AAA at 4.8cm.
Expanded to 5.3cm via ultrasound on 7/31/2002.
Advised by local surgeon time to consider surgery, stent is
not an option since it protrudes into the ciliac area
and involves the spleen, kidney, and stomach arteries.
Susequent CT scan in Nov 2002 revealed th protrusion wasn't as high up as orginally thought.
But still above the renal arteries, and would be a challanging
procedure.
Have been told Dr Joe Coselli of Baylor Clinic in Houston
has the largest practice with 90 95 % success rate for this type
Does your clinic have any percentages availabe in this area.
I think localling in Fort Wayne they dont do many of this type/

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-JT]

Although this is not technically a neurology question and would be more appropriate for the cardiology forum, I asked my cardiology colleague what the percentages are here. Now there's a discrepancy of what you're saying. You called it thoracic in the title of the post, but then say it's an AAA which is an abdominal aneurysm and your descriptions are more consistent with an abd aneur. As I do not have your official records and imaging studies, I cannot give you specific risk percentages for your case - just general. For abdominal aneurysm, the risk of complications is quite low and said to be at 2-3%. These are done by vascular surgeons here-such as Dr. Krajewski.  However, for a thoracic it is higher (about 7-10%) and really depends on a number of things such as concomitant medical conditions (coronary artery disease)and how extensive the aneursym is. This is a more complex operation and is done by our cardiothoracic surgeons - Dr. Lytle and Pederson. The Cleveland Clinic has been consecutively ranked number one for cardiology and cardiothoracic surgery. It's something to consider. However, if Baylor is closer for you and your family and the surgeon is reputable, then this may be the better choice for you. Talk to your family and physicians to find the best option for you. Good luck.