When Jose Palacios, 56, arrived at NYU Langone Hospital—Brooklyn for his operation last March, he thought he would never walk again. The infection in his foot had gotten so bad, he was afraid his foot may need to amputated. After the surgery was finished, he could hardly believe his eyes.

“I figured when I woke up, I would have no foot,” says Palacios, who had suffered complications related to type 2 diabetes. “So when I looked over and saw my foot, I thought, ‘Wait a minute, am I dreaming?’”

The Brooklyn native credits his surgeon at NYU Langone Hospital—Brooklyn, Sheila N. Blumberg, MD, with saving his foot and putting him back on a path to wellness. “An event like that changes your whole perspective on life,” says Palacios.

Dr. Blumberg, a board-certified vascular surgeon, says Palacios was experiencing septic shock when he first arrived to the hospital’s Emergency Department. He had developed a severe infection because of diabetic foot ulcers.

Dr. Blumberg was able to uncover the underlying issue and avoid amputation. “He had deteriorated so much because he not only had diabetic foot disease, but also chronic venous insufficiency that went untreated,” she says. “He would not have been able to heal his leg without resolving those conditions.”

Dr. Blumberg used a procedure called excisional debridement and skin graft techniques to reconstruct his foot and clear out the infection. To prevent future occurrences and improve blood flow to the leg, Dr. Blumberg used a process called laser ablation on the troublesome veins that limited circulation.

As a specialist in vascular surgery, Dr. Blumberg is part of NYU Langone’s Vein Center, one of the top vein treatment programs in New York City. The center uses minimally invasive procedures to treat conditions affecting veins (the blood vessels that transport blood toward the heart), including varicose veins, spider veins, deep vein thrombosis, and venous ulcers.

“Dr. Blumberg’s ability to solve problems and make a lifelong impact on her patients is evident through patients like Jose,” says Prashant Sinha, MD, chief of surgery at NYU Langone Hospital—Brooklyn. “Our patients rely on us—and put their trust in us—to do everything we can to improve their health, and Dr. Blumberg’s work is an exceptional testament to that promise.”

Since the surgery, Palacios has been focusing on eating a healthy diet, seeing his doctors regularly, and getting plenty of exercise—on his own two feet.

Media Inquiries

Colin DeVries
Phone: 718-630-7414
colin.devries@nyulangone.org