Mount Clemens’ McLaren Macomb Adds Minimally Invasive Surgical System to Create Fistulas for Kidney Failure Treatment

McLaren Macomb in Mount Clemens has expanded its surgical capabilities with the addition of the WavelinQ 4F EndoAVF System, an innovation that creates a fistula for those who have kidney failure and are surviving on dialysis. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the system for use in February.
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WavelinQ 4F EndoAVF System
McLaren Macomb has started using the WavelinQ 4F EndoAVF System, which offers a minimally invasive way to create a fistula, which is a connected vein and artery necessary for dialysis. // Photo courtesy of McLaren Macomb

McLaren Macomb in Mount Clemens has expanded its surgical capabilities with the addition of the WavelinQ 4F EndoAVF System, an innovation that creates a fistula for those who have kidney failure and are surviving on dialysis. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the system for use in February.

The technology allows for the creation of an arteriovenous fistula, or a connection between an artery and a vein, in either the ulnar artery and ulnar vein or the radial artery and radial vein. Creating a fistula is a necessary procedure for patients who need dialysis due to end stage renal disease, or the last stage of chronic kidney disease in which the kidney is functioning at just 10-15 percent. Treatments include dialysis and transplant.

The system offers patients a minimally invasive arteriovenous fistula creation alternative to open surgery.

Arteriovenous fistulas increase blood pressure to strengthen a weakened vein and support its growth. Without the procedure, the vein would not be able to support the needles from a dialysis unit and would collapse.

“Patients with end-stage renal disease have few options and even fewer minimally invasive approaches when their treatment requires the need of an AV fistula,” says Dr. Joseph Cuppari, a vascular surgeon at McLaren Macomb. “Being able to provide this as an option for patients who are already in a compromised position can benefit their condition by increasing our chances of successfully creating a usable fistula.”

With its slim profile, the WavelinQ 4F EndoAVF System increases the arteriovenous fistula location options and allows for additional access points in the wrist for surgeons while reducing the risks of scarring, arm disfigurement, or neurological compromise compared to the traditional open surgery approach.

More than 400,000 people in the U.S. live with end stage renal disease.

McLaren Macomb has 288 beds.