Arun Kumarasamy, MBA

Arun Kumarasamy, MBA is an almost perfect example of how much of difference specialisation makes in modern high-performance medicine: Since 2009, this renowned specialist has fully committed to focusing on an area of medicine that is still relatively young – namely interventional radiology. It is also thanks to highly specialised physicians like Arun Kumarasamy that this promising discipline is increasingly becoming the focus of attention. As chief consultant at the Centre of Competence for Diagnostics, Treatment and Prevention of Vascular Diseases at the Sachsenhausen Hospital in Frankfurt, Dr Kumarasamy is regarded as an experienced professional, especially for diseases of the vascular system – i.e. in interventional angiology, where he is one of the pioneers in the treatment of PAOD or “window-shopper’s disease”.

This field has become increasingly important in the development of medicine in recent years: Interventional radiology plays an increasing larger role in the minimally invasive and above all success-oriented treatment of vascular diseases. For that reason, many people may not yet be very familiar with the term, especially since most people still assume that radiology refers only to pure imaging, i.e. diagnostic procedures.

Interventional radiology now uses the highly developed imaging instruments, but in an active sense, to perform therapeutic interventions. Arun Kumarasamy was already enthusiastic about the idea that a method like radiology, which is as sparing for the body as it is precise, can also be used for comprehensive care of vascular diseases, when he started as a speciality registrar in radiology in 2009 after studying medicine in Giessen.

Extensive knowledge in all areas of radiology

Thus, this young doctor’s further path was at least roughly outlined: From 2011 to 2016, he gained extensive experience as a senior consultant at the Sana Klinikum Offenbach and in Prof. Dr. Starck’s interventional angiology practice in Offenbach. During this time, he also specialised in the area of minimally invasive transcatheter treatment methods for vascular diseases.

Arun Kumarasamy MBA has been Chief Consultant for Interventional Radiology at the Sachsenhausen Hospital since 2017. In addition, the MBA represents another area in which Dr Kumarasamy has excelled: He earned this degree with the successful completion of the International Hospital and Health Management program at the Frankfurt School of Finance. This degree also proves that Dr Kumarasamy is familiar with all relevant strategies, structures and processes in healthcare management. His patients experience this quality above all through the thoughtful organisation of the entire clinic – for example, in the short wait times and the excellent care in every respect.

The team working with Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, offers high-quality care for all vascular health issues. Whether these are degenerative or inflammatory diseases of the arteries, or the blood vessels supplying the brain, for example a narrowing of the carotid artery (carotid stenosis): At the renowned centre of competence for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of vascular diseases, almost every vascular disease is treated at an international level. However, there is a particular reason that the clinic and its chief consultant are well known even beyond their own region: When it comes to peripheral arterial occlusive disease, the department has an international reputation.

Interventional angiology: minimally invasive interventions by means of a catheter

This disease is known as a “window -shopper’s disease – which is definitely an apt descriptor. Because peripheral arterial occlusive disease usually affects the calf muscles by restricting upstream perfusion, sufferers are often forced to stop after walking only a short distance – as if they are they are actually walking "from shop window to shop window” and stopping at each one.

PAOD, as medical professionals usually refer to this disease, is a progressive perfusion disorder that primarily affects the arteries in the legs. The cause is almost always hardening of the arteries – in medical terms, atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis. It involves deposits that lead to narrowing and ultimately to occlusion of the large arteries by blood clots. The cramp-like pain in the calves and thighs is caused by a lack of oxygen, which leads to a loss in function in the muscle. At first, this is only noticed under exertion, but later it also occurs at resting. Often, if the perfusion disorder reaches a critical stage, there is even a risk that amputation of the affected limb may be required.

Since acute vascular occlusions can be not only very painful, but also life-threatening, precise diagnosis is important. With Chief Consultant Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, patients can rest secure in the knowledge that they are being treated by a specialist who has dedicated himself early on to diagnosing and treating “window shopper’s disease”, and who delivers precise results through targeted examinations, which in turn lead to the rapid initiation of treatment. For example, if the organs cannot be supplied with blood via circulatory bypasses, then there is no time to lose if there is even the slightest suspicion of a peripheral arterial occlusive disease.

Innovative: Interventional radiology meets keyhole surgery

In Sachsenhausen, the team led by Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, has extensive experience and a high level of expertise in the treatment of acute and chronic arterial occlusions using minimally invasive surgical methods. They require only punctures, and thus serve the intended purpose without further severing the skin and muscles. As with interventional radiology, so-called keyhole surgery is one of the innovations of modern high-performance medicine that has made rather astonishing progress in recent years.

Like radiology, minimally invasive surgery is one of the more sparing procedures: Instead of long incisions, only tiny punctures are needed, which can be performed with almost no access trauma – and thus also significantly reduce other risks, including postoperative pain. In addition, this method means shorter hospital stays. However, minimally invasive surgery requires exceptionally high precision from the surgeon, who must have has a high-quality education. Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, is just such a specialist, and he is always up to date on new surgical methods, thanks to his international network as well.

Modern procedures: Balloon angioplasty

The chief consultant enjoys a first-class reputation in the field of catheterization procedures – i.e. angioplasty. The catheter is introduced via a blood vessel, and an X-ray contrast medium indicates the level of perfusion. In this way, any restrictions that have arisen as a result of narrowing or occlusion can be precisely identified. Subsequently, the diagnosed obstructions within the cavity are passed with the wire and catheter.

As Chief Consultant Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, see it, balloon angioplasty is considered to be the standard procedure for arterial vasoconstriction or vascular occlusion. In this procedure, he threads the balloon onto a wire, pushes it into the stenosis, and then, under constant X-ray guidance, allows it to expand by injection with diluted contrast medium. Depending on the indication, the process of stretching the balloon is combined with the delivery of medication. Here, too, besides medical expertise, precision craftsmanship is required – and the treatment successes achieved at Sachsenhausen Hospital with this method have drawn attention even beyond the region.

Arun Kumarasamy selects the appropriate solution for each patient individually, in consultation with them and after thorough consideration of which procedure will provide optimal results. This is something on which all patients in Frankfurt can rely: These are all state-of-the-art and less-invasive methods, which are used in catheterization procedures to widen or reopen narrowed or blocked blood vessels. There is also security in the knowledge that all treatments are carried out in the in-house catheterisation laboratory.

At the hospital in Frankfurt, the chief consultant also regularly implants stents to keep the blood vessel open. The stents are mounted on a balloon and in this way advanced through the catheter. When the balloon expands, the stent is pushed against the vessel wall, where it provides improved blood flow in the long term. Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, uses state-of-the-art laser-cut stents made of nitinol, as well as balloon-expandable and self-expandable stents: The self-expanding support expands to the predetermined diameter when heated to body temperature. This keeps the artery open. And this solution is permanent, because the implanted material becomes completely integrated over time.

What fascinates Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, in interventional angiology is precisely the versatility that this young discipline offers. Thus, for example, the treatment of occlusions in dialysis shunts is amongst his range of services. In this procedure, an artery is connected to a vein as a minimally invasive short-circuit connection in patients with renal insufficiency. This ensures that dialysis cannulas can be accommodated, which in turn guarantee sufficient blood flow. And if a narrowing has formed in the renal artery, i.e., renal artery stenosis is present, then quick action is vital: The reason is that, if perfusion is lacking, and consequently there is a lack nutrient and oxygen supply, the tissue responsible for renal function can be affected, which can even lead to a renal infarction.

Therefore it should be obvious that the incredibly versatile techniques of interventional radiology, with its innovative therapies, can be extensively applied in vascular surgery procedures. The interdisciplinary nature of the specialty is evident above all from the fact that radiological procedures are required before, after or during vascular surgery, in consultation with specialists from other areas. In Arun Kumarasamy, the Sachsenhausen Hospital is fortunate to have a contact person who is open to all medical questions.

It should come as no surprise, then, that under Chief Consultant Arun Kumarasamy, MBA, the Interventional Radiology Department at Sachsenhausen Hospital, as respected centre of excellence for vascular diseases, has gained a first-class reputation that extends far beyond the Rhine-Main region. It is precisely highly focused specialists like him who ensure that interventional radiology is becoming increasingly important specialty worldwide. Because interventional radiologists utilise not only X-rays and ultrasound, but also use computed and magnetic resonance tomography, in the future, therapeutic procedures performed under imaging guidance will probably affect almost all areas of our body.

However, diseases such as vascular occlusions will still be the main area of application. And when it comes to highly specialized treatments for vascular diseases, which are carried out using sparing, minimally invasive procedures and under constant X-ray guidance, the hospital in Frankfurt, the metropolis on the Main, is considered a top destination.