People love the Eastern Shore’s communities for their scenic coastal beauty, their connection to a simpler time we see slipping away. While treasuring our traditional heritage and lifestyle, we’re fortunate to welcome change in the form of positive advancements in communication, education, and most of all, medicine.

Mid-Atlantic Surgical Associates is proud to offer top-notch care for potential victims of stroke and aneurysm with its exceptional vascular surgical team, Dr. Douglas B. Wilhite and Dr. James M. Scanlon.

Wilhite has served as director of vascular surgery at Peninsula Regional Medical Center for the past five years. Scanlon, since arriving in Salisbury last year, has been pivotal in lending his considerable surgical skill to advanced procedures like the first local implantation of the Endologix Powerlink XL, successfully repairing an abdominal aortic aneurysm and the first local implantation of the Cook TX2 to repair a thoracic aortic aneurysm. (Both the Powerlink XL and Cook TX2 are forms of stent grafts used to treat those with larger aortas suffering from aneurysms that otherwise might have to undergo an invasive opening of the artery.)

Wilhite is excited to be in a mid-sized community which offers patients progressive care. “At PRMC we have a new endovascular suite combining a standard operating room environment with the newest X-ray equipment available. That way, we’re able to perform a wide variety of image-guided treatments and combine them with open surgeries in what a lot of people are referring to as hybrid operations. You can get everything done in one room, at one time, rather than moving patients around the hospital from area to area. It’s great for the patients and surgeons alike,” Wilhite said.

“Although people know there are good physicians here, they may still think that specialized care necessitates traveling elsewhere. Dr. Scanlon and I represent the highest level of specialization available in the area of vascular surgery, allowing people to stay at home and receive the same quality of care available in any big city.”

According to Wilhite, Mid-Atlantic Surgical has witnessed a huge expansion of its vascular care services and an overwhelming response from patients across the peninsula. “From the southern tip of Virginia, to Annapolis, to southern Delaware, people are coming here to get these procedures done,” he said.

“While Mid-Atlantic Surgical’s vascular team provides treatment for a variety of patients’ needs, most fall into three main categories,” Wilhite said.

The first involves procedures for patients with blockages in the carotid artery (the principal blood supply pipeline to the head and neck) who have a high risk of developing stroke, or who have experienced mini-strokes. Among these are endartectomy, removal of the thickened or damaged carotid artery’s inner lining; for higher risk patients, the insertion of a stent increases and restores blood flow through dangerously narrowed areas.

Another important area centers on the implantation of stents and grafts to treat aortic aneurysms — weak spots forming balloon-like bulges which pose a danger of enlarging and rupturing over time, primarily abdominal or thoracic (chest).

A third crucial area most often needed by patients is limb revascularization, encompassing a range of treatments including bypass surgery, angioplasty, and arterial laser procedures to alleviate potentially life or limb threatening blockages in the leg arteries.

The practice also provides management of varicose veins, a disease commonly considered simply a cosmetic disorder, but in reality causing leg pain, aching, and heaviness for millions of people in the United States, Wilhite added.

“What we do provides an excellent clinical result for patients: their legs will feel better, their varicose veins will resolve, their swelling will go away, and their sores will heal. Our procedures are geared towards treating the underlying root problem,” Wilhite said.

Being able to practice an advanced level of medical care in a community he cares for has provided Wilhite with enormous reward and satisfaction.

“Both my wife and I are from small towns; I’m originally from outside suburban Wilmington, Del. I wanted to live and work someplace where I knew the people I was taking care of, where my kids could grow up with their kids, a close-knit community. Salisbury is just the right sized town — big enough that there’s plenty to do, small enough to not feel like a stranger when walking down the street,” he said.

“My goal was to develop a university-level vascular program for a mid-sized community and, along with Dr. Scanlon, an incredibly gifted surgeon, we’re really starting to grow the program. I think we’re doing good things for people,” Wilhite concluded.

Dr. Douglas B. Wilhite and Dr. James M. Scanlon can be reached at Mid-Atlantic Surgical Associates, 6507 Deer Pointe Drive, Salisbury, Md., 410-543-9332, and www.midatlanticsurgical.com.