Patients come to the 12th floor of The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center East Hospital because circulation problems have taken something from them and may take more yet.
These patients have peripheral artery disease (PAD), which often occurs when fat and cholesterol collect as plaque in the blood vessels, narrowing those vessels and causing a reduction in blood flow to limbs. It most often affects the legs and feet.
Millions in the United States have this condition, and it disproportionately affects people along lower socioeconomic lines. The population that lives near Ohio State East Hospital, on the Near East Side of Columbus, is among the highest-risk groups for developing PAD.
Vascular surgeon Babatunde Oriowo, MBBS, is helping to bring hope and comfort to those patients with a program he started at East Hospital focused on treating PAD and helping people reduce their risk of it worsening.
East Hospital is an ideal location to have services directed at treating this disease, says Ernest Mazzaferri, MD, FACC, interim co-director of The Ohio State University Heart and Vascular Center and medical director of Heart and Vascular Center Clinical Operations. It’s in the King-Lincoln Bronzeville neighborhood of Columbus, which has about four Black residents for every three white ones, according to 2020 U.S. Census data.
“Peripheral vascular diseases are very underdiagnosed, so there’s a lot of people out there who aren’t being treated for their disease,” Dr. Mazzaferri says. “We are thrilled to have a program to better serve the community.”
Already, Dr. Oriowo is performing some bedrock procedures to treat PAD – like inserting stents in blood vessels to improve blood flow. He sees about 25 to 30 patients at his weekly clinic sessions and plans to expand the PAD program to include larger surgeries in the coming years.
So far, it’s been a great fit for Dr. Oriowo, who joined the faculty at Ohio State in 2024.
“All I can be is my authentic self, take it or leave it, and hopefully that’s something that more people want to take than leave,” he says. “I’ve found the group to be just very welcoming.
“Things are growing, things are changing, they’d love to have me help out. That’s how I felt through this entire process.”