Medicare AAA Screening Benefit Extended To 12 Months

Main Category: Cardiovascular / Cardiology
Also Included In: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 23 Dec 2008 - 0:00 PST

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A one-time, free Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) screening for at-risk Medicare beneficiaries will be available for 12 months after enrollment beginning January 1, 2009. The benefit became law on February 8, 2006 and was originally offered for a six-month period after enrollment beginning January 1, 2007.

Nearly 200,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with AAA annually; approximately 15,000 of these cases may be severe enough to cause death if not treated. Men who have smoked sometime during their life, and men and women with a family history of AAA qualify for the free screening benefit as part of their Welcome to Medicare Physical Exam.

AAA is an enlargement or "bulge" that develops in a weakened area within the largest artery in the abdomen. The pressure generated by each heartbeat pushes against the weakened aortic wall, causing the aneurysm to enlarge. If the AAA remains undetected, the aortic wall continues to weaken, and the aneurysm continues to grow. Eventually, the aneurysm becomes so large, and its wall so weak, that rupture occurs. When this happens there is massive internal bleeding, a situation that is usually fatal. The only way to break this cycle is to find the AAA before it ruptures.

Although AAA has few symptoms some patients report:

-- A pulsing feeling in their abdomen

-- Unexplained, severe pain in their abdomen or lower back

-- Pain, discoloration, or sores on their feet (this is a rare symptom)

People should see vascular surgeons if they are experiencing symptoms of AAA, or if unrelated tests reveal AAA may be present. Vascular surgeons are the only physicians treating vascular disease today who can perform all the treatment options available, including medical management, minimally invasive endovascular stent graft procedures, or open AAA repair.

To learn more about AAA and other vascular diseases visit VascularWeb.org at http://www.vascularweb.org/patients/NorthPoint /Abdominal_Aortic_Aneurysm.html.

About the Society for Vascular Surgery

The Society for Vascular Surgery is a not-for-profit medical society that seeks to advance excellence and innovation in vascular health through education, advocacy, research, and public awareness. SVS is the national advocate for 2,700 vascular surgeons dedicated to the prevention and cure of vascular disease. Visit the website at http://www.VascularWeb.org.

Society for Vascular Surgery
633 N St. Clair, 24th Fl.
Chicago
IL 60611
United States
http://www.VascularWeb.org