In addition to presenting the research that we are doing here at UNMC, I look forward to getting the perspective of researchers and clinicians treating patients with aortic aneurysms in a very different medical system. From the beginning of his surgical residency after graduation from the University of Colorado Medical School in 1982, Dr. Baxter has been involved with cardiovascular research. He joined UNMC as an assistant professor, Department of Surgery, in 1990. He was named associate professor in 1995 and professor in 1998. The grant offers new possibilities in developing tetracyclines, a group of commonly used antibiotics, as a non-invasive treatment for some aortic aneurysms.
Aortic aneurysms are a very common and potentially deadly disease.
Approximately 25,000 Nebraskans are affected with elderly men being the most common target. Albert Einstein, Lucille Ball and U.S. Army Gen. George Patton are a few well-known individuals who have died of ruptured aneurysms. Symptoms are rare before rupture so most unruptured aneurysms are detected when X-rays are done for some unrelated problem. Large aneurysms detected before rupture can be safely repaired, while most small aneurysms are observed for growth with repair being reserved for those that grow rapidly or reach a dangerously large size. Dr. Baxter was an invited speaker at a NIH-sponsored meeting on aneurysms held earlier this month.