Vascular Surgery

The Department of Vascular Surgery of Peking University People's Hospital began its development in 2000 and was one of the earlier independent vascular surgery departments in China. It has now developed into a comprehensive center for the diagnosis and treatment of vascular diseases with a high reputation both nationally and internationally, as well as a national key discipline of general surgery and a national training center for endovascular treatment of peripheral vascular diseases. It has an independent 30-bed ward, an expert team of 11 members, an annual surgical volume of more than 1,200 cases, and approximately 15,000 outpatient and emergency visits annually. It has an independent hybrid operating room in the hospital's central operating suite, equipped with an advanced DSA angiography system, enabling the diagnosis and treatment of all types of vascular diseases.

Department management follows the principles of openness, innovation, lean organization, and efficiency. A complete and effective mechanism has been established for the rational allocation and utilization of medical, teaching, and research resources and for the development of outstanding personnel. A highly qualified medical and nursing team has been built with good quality, an optimized structure, lean and efficient operation, and vitality. The department currently has 11 physicians and 15 nurses, including 5 chief physicians, 2 associate chief physicians, 1 doctoral supervisor, 2 master's supervisors, 1 nurse-in-charge, and 5 nurses. All physicians have postgraduate degrees; personnel with doctoral degrees account for 100%, and 50% have postdoctoral research experience, while more than 80% have studied abroad as visiting scholars. More than 60 master's and doctoral students have been trained successively; after graduation, some went to cardiac and vascular surgery centers in more than 10 provinces and cities to continue working in related specialties, and many have become members and key professionals of national committees at various levels in cardiac surgery, vascular surgery, and interventional therapy.

In clinical practice, the department not only diagnoses and treats almost all common and frequently occurring arterial and venous diseases effectively, but also receives broad recognition from expert teams in the field for its results in the diagnosis and treatment of difficult and complex cases, including complex aortic aneurysms and dissections, Budd–Chiari syndrome, and tumors invading major blood vessels. The number and complexity of operations performed are at the leading level in China. It was the first vascular surgery team in China to successfully complete total aortic prosthetic graft replacement under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. Its independently developed radical operation for Budd–Chiari syndrome, involving complete exposure of the inferior vena cava below the hepatic segment, is the final surgical hope apart from liver transplantation for patients with Budd–Chiari syndrome after failed interventional treatment. In recent years, through short- and long-term academic exchanges and clinical training with comprehensive vascular diagnosis and treatment centers in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, and other European and American countries, as well as in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and mainland China, the department has progressively developed and completed internationally mainstream minimally invasive vascular surgery techniques, such as completely endovascular minimally invasive treatment of aortic diseases, fenestrated stent technology, multibranch stent technology, and internal iliac artery IBD reconstruction. It has also introduced new equipment and instruments, including arterial plaque atherectomy, thrombus aspiration and fragmentation, drug-coated balloons, and cutting balloons. In technology and equipment, it has consistently kept pace with the times and remained internationally advanced. In research, it emphasizes etiological studies of the pathophysiology of diseases and has formed research teams along three main lines: Marfan syndrome and thoracic aortic aneurysm, atherosclerosis and postoperative restenosis, and the etiology of Budd–Chiari syndrome. It has applied for, received, or participated in 2 special funds of the Ministry of Science and Technology, 8 National Natural Science Foundation projects, 1 special doctoral program fund of the Ministry of Education, 3 Beijing Natural Science Foundation projects, 2 Capital Special Technology projects, and 3 research funds from Peking University and its Health Science Center. It has published more than 200 articles in domestic and international journals and more than 20 monographs, and has received numerous honors, including the National Science and Technology Progress Award, the Chinese Medical Science and Technology Award, the Huaxia Medical Science and Technology Award, and the Beijing Medical Science and Technology Award.

In recent years, our center has leveraged its advantage as a vice-chairman institution of the Vascular Surgery Branch of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, responded to the national policy of Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei integration, and made extensive use of the clinical and academic platforms of the Peking University Medical Consortium and the Peking University Vascular Forum to conduct exchanges, continuing education, and assistance with primary vascular surgery centers. It has trained nearly 100 visiting physicians and provided technical consultation and consultation services to approximately 500 hospitals in China. Externally, it has actively developed international cooperation and deepened exchanges with vascular disease diagnosis and treatment centers at Yale University and Stanford University in the United States and in Leipzig, Germany. Every year, it participates in international academic conferences in Europe and the United States and the Asia-Pacific region, and has trained a group of young academic leaders with an international perspective and communication skills. It has not only introduced advanced ideas and technologies but also communicated the strengths and distinctive features of the discipline to international peers. As an important clinical trial base of the former National Health and Family Planning Commission and the former China Food and Drug Administration, the center actively conducts multicenter collaboration, undertakes multiple premarket clinical trials of medical devices and consumables every year, cooperates extensively with domestic medical device research and development companies, actively promotes the domestic transformation of clinical achievements, and increases patent applications. At present, department personnel hold more than 20 national invention and utility model patents of various types.

Professor Zhang Xiaoming, academic leader of the discipline, studied under Professor Wang Zhonggao, the only academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the field of vascular surgery in China. He serves as chair or vice-chair of multiple academic committees in China and abroad and has been appointed editorial board member and guest reviewer for more than 10 core journals in China and abroad. He has more than 30 years of experience in the diagnosis and treatment of common and complex diseases such as aortic aneurysm and dissection, Budd–Chiari syndrome, and peripheral arterial disease. He has published more than 100 relevant academic papers, obtained research funding of over one million yuan, and received the second prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, the first prize of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications Science and Technology Progress Award, and the second prize of the Shanghai Science and Technology Award. The radical operation for Budd–Chiari syndrome involving complete exposure of the inferior vena cava below the hepatic segment, which he pioneered, has been widely recognized and gradually adopted in the field of vascular surgery in China. He was also among the first in China to perform total aortic replacement and completely endovascular treatment of complex aortic aneurysms.

The Vascular Surgery Center of Peking University People's Hospital will carry forward Academician Wang Zhonggao's spirit of rigorous scholarship and courage to pioneer, continue to advance under the leadership of Professor Zhang Xiaoming, and become a cornerstone of the vascular surgery community in China and abroad. All medical and nursing staff of Vascular Surgery are willing to serve the majority of patients and friends wholeheartedly with superb medical skills, a warm attitude, and excellent quality. We wish all patients a speedy recovery!