Dr Yow Vascular Malaysia

18/02/2026

KONG HEI FATT CHOY!! WISHING ALL MY PATIENTS, FAMILY & FRIENDS A FANTASTIC, PRODUCTIVE & MOST IMPORTANTLY, HEALTHY YEAR OF THE FIRE HORSE!

IN OUR FAMILY, THE TEA CEREMONY HAS BEEN THE MOST IMPORTANT START OF THE CHINESE NEW YEAR SINCE I WAS A CHILD.

IT SIGNIFIES RESPECT FOR YOUR ELDERS, A CENTRAL PART OF CHINESE CONFUCIAN CULTURE.

AND THE REASON WE CELEBRATE THE NEW YEAR.

It started with my Poh Poh & my mother insisted on it every year on the First Day of the New Year.

Respect & care for your elders is a default position in Asian culture rather than something you have to earn, like in the West.

That your elders, through their longer & more productive life have worthy wisdom & knowledge to impart.

And, thus deserving of respect.

Whilst one may disagree with another's position, offering tea to your parents & grandparents brings us back together as a family & society, to talk, to work out differences.

And your social connections, the quality & its warmth, with your family & friends, are one of the key determinants of a long & healthy life.

My father at 89, is testament to that.

It has been one of the key tenets of Confucian teaching that has guided me as a person & a professional.

MAY YOUR NEW YEAR BE ONE FILLED WITH BOUNDLESS SUCCESS, HEALTH & HARMONY!!

15/02/2026

This is a proper Valentine's story... And it doesn't have to be the 14th!!

14/02/2026

Moutet the Magician... winds up even Sinner...

14/02/2026

YOU MAKE LEMONADE....

REMEMBER 2 YEARS AGO WHEN WE SAID WE WERE EMBARKING ON A CAMPAIGN OF GUERILLA GARDENING TO GREEN UP OUR NEIGHBOURHOOD?

WELL, THESE ARE THE FRUITS OF MY LABOUR...

There are now about 20 fruit & curry trees along the roadside verge & in the children's playground which I planted with seedlings from our dinner table..

Actually, we planted 50 but we have lost more than half to snails, heat, & errant grass cutters.. But we carried on & will keep on planting..

Yep, seeds from the fruit at our dinner table were stuck into a re-purposed plastic biscuit container, germinated & then grown in our backyard until ready for planting ..

Rambutan, longan, papaya, nangka(jackfruit), soursop, curry & of course, our sole lemon tree...

Heck, we even tried durian but they didn't like flat ground..

Why?

1. To provide shade & cooling to an otherwise barren space
2. To provide fruit for the community
3. To teach my son the value of slow living & what truly matters
4. Most importantly, to fight the climate crisis: Every tree matters.

Why fruit trees?
We figured they would be less likely to be cut down if they were useful : fruit for everyone & curry leaves for cooking.

And so, our lemon tree was the first to flower & bear fruit.. And we kid you not, it actually has a fragrance that we have not experienced elsewhere... a unique Malaysian terroir..

Amalfi had better be concerned!

This New Year, the lemons are going into our salt-baked prawns!! And lots of ice-cold minty lemonade!!

07/02/2026

Statins have had bad press for some time .. As a Vascular Surgeon, this is a workhorse drug for all my patients with arterial disease...

Now this landmark meta-analysis paper from the Lancet, one of the world's most respected, high impact medical journals has shown that the majority of its side-effects are NOT due to the statins themselves...

This should hopefully reduce the number of patients rejecting a potentially life-saving drug due to misinformation from unverified sources..

Research suggests statins are not as risky as once thought

04/02/2026

A FULL AUDITORIUM ! : WHAT A DELIGHT TO HAVE OVER 80 HEALTHCARE COLLEAGUES : CONSULTANTS, MEDICAL OFFICERS, NURSES & PHYSIOTHERAPISTS ATTEND THE TALK BY MR YOW KUAN HENG, CONSULTANT VASCULAR & ENDOVASCULAR SURGEON, AT HOSPITAL SHAH ALAM RECENTLY!

IT WAS A PARTICULAR HONOUR TO HAVE THE HOSPITAL DIRECTOR & HEAD OF MEDICINE PRESENT!

MR YOW IS THE VASCULAR & ENDOVASCULAR SURGEON AT SRI KOTA SPECIALIST MEDICAL CENTRE.

The talk on '5 Most Important Vascular Conditons You Need To Refer & Modern, Evidence-based Treatments' covered :

- Why Carotid Surgery is 1st Line Treatment in Prevention of Ischaemic Strokes from Carotid Stenosis
- How Level One Evidence shows that Carotid Surgery is Safer than Stents When You've Had a TIA/Mini-stroke
- How Varicose Vein Treatment Prevents Leg Ulcers
- Why Leg Ulcers & Gangrene Must Be Seen by a Vascular Surgeon Within 2 Weeks of Diagnosis
- Why Early Referral to a Vascular Surgeon Can Save Lives & Legs
- How Aortic Aneurysm Screening with Ultrasound Saves Lives
- The Pros & Cons of Open & Endovascular Aortic Aneurysm Repair(EVAR)
- Why It Is Important that Arterio-Venous Fistulas Are Created & Maintained by Dual-trained Vascular Specialists

It was very gratifying to see Mr Yow inundated with loads of probing questions about important Vascular conditions, an indication of audience engagement.

It was even more satisfying to be delivering Continuing Medical Education to fellow colleagues in the public sector, a sign that we remain involved in the health of the nation.

May it lead to many more Vascular referrals. With it, many more lives & legs saved and strokes prevented!

25/01/2026

As a human being, healthcare professional & Vascular Trauma surgeon, this is appalling & has to stop!!..

‘I asked the ICE agents if the victim had a pulse, and they said they did not know,’ the doctor wrote in a sworn declaration

21/01/2026

BREAKFAST SYMPOSIUM AT HOSPITAL SHAH ALAM : '3 MOST IMPORTANT VASCULAR CONDITIONS THAT NEED REFERRAL' IN 2 DAYS TIME

WHEN : FRIDAY, 23RD JANUARY, 2026, 8 - 9 AM
WHERE : MAIN AUDITORIUM, HOSPITAL SHAH ALAM

THRILLED & PRIVELEGED TO HAVE BEEN INVITED TO PRESENT TO ALL MY MINISTRY OF HEALTH/KKM COLLEAGUES ON THE ABOVE TOPIC.

Vascular & Endovascular Surgery is a vital but under-exposed specialty in the modern, healthcare setting.

There are many critical areas where we as Vascular & Endovascular Surgeons are called upon for our surgical input & important conditions that we treat.

Teaser : It will be on any one of these topics:

Carotid Surgery in Stroke Prevention
Aortic Aneurysms
Leg Ulcers & Gangrene
Dialysis access
Varicose veins

If you're a doctor or a heathcare professional looking to fill in gaps in your Vascular knowledge or an update on what you already think you know about Vascular conditions or their treatments, do drop by.







Breakfast provided!

15/01/2026

ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSMS (AAAs) NEED TO BE FIXED WHEN THEY REACH 5.5 CM. OTHERWISE THERE IS A RISK OF LIFE-THREATENING RUPTURE.

OPEN SURGERY & ENDOVASCULAR ANEURYSM REPAIR (EVAR) ARE 2 METHODS OF AAA REPAIR.

Open repair is the established gold standard. A polyester graft is stitched into your aorta to replace the aneurysmal/diseased segment of aorta. However, it involves a big cut in your abdomen & has a higher 30-day mortality of 4.7% compared to EVAR (1.7%).





EVAR is the minimally-invasive new kid on the block. An aortic stent graft is inserted via 6 mm punctures in your groin into the AAA sac to 're-line' it & exclude the aneurysm sac from the circulation.

However, EVAR is not as durable as open repair, particularly if there is a hostile AAA neck. This is the segment of aorta below kidney arteries.

Ideally the AAA neck should be parallel, straight & longer than 15 mm to ensure a good seal between the aortic wall & stent-graft.

Hostile AAA necks are :

1. Angulated
2. Short
3. Conical
4. Have clots/calcium within them

EVAR is a good option for frailer, elderly patients.

SO HOW DO WE ENSURE YOUR EVAR AORTIC ANEURYSM REPAIR LASTS A LIFETIME?

Although there are no absolute guarantees in Surgery, there are strategies that we use to ensure your EVAR does not leak, migrate & kink.

These are :

1. Ensuring the Endovascular Surgeon & his team are trained, skilled & experienced in measuring & planning your EVAR. Having fellowships in 2 European professorial Vascular units has helped me tremendously.

2. Using state-of-the-art computer software to measure your EVAR precisely.

3. Primary fixation of the neck using Endo-anchors

The latter is a strategy we used to reduce the risk of graft migration & endoleaks in the future.

This elderly patient had a shortish, conical neck. He wanted to avoid an open repair & prolonged wait for a FEVAR.

So, we used Heli-FX Endo-Anchors, which essentially screwed alloy anchors from the EVAR graft onto the wall of the aortic neck for maximum security.

The post-procedure angiograms showed complete AAA exclusion with no leaks.

The patient was home in 3 days.

07/01/2026

My unstoppable, fearless, beautiful mother, Wong Yet Meng, passed away one year ago yesterday.

She would have been 82 today.

It's been such a tough couple of days that I almost missed the chance to stop to remember her & what she represented.

She taught me nothing is impossible.

She taught me to try to leave the world a better place.

The last picture was my first day as a Vascular Specialist Registrar & my last picture taken alone with her.

Thank you again, Mummy for all your gifts...

You are still with us...

28/12/2025

CHRISTMAS IN PENANG ...

THE IDEAL OF WHAT A DEVELOPED MALAYSIA SHOULD BE...

COSMOPOLITAN, INTEGRATED, GREEN, PROGRESSIVE..

THE OLD & NEW, CULTURES PRESERVED YET LOOKING TO THE FUTURE...

Ancient Chinese temples nestling beneath curvilinear skyscrapers..

Old bus depots re-purposed for music & families..

Arthouse cafes where your child gets to doodle on the table...

Green boulevards where trees are sacred..

Where not every green space or old shoplot is seen as an opportunity for property developers to eviscerate...

Where bus stops & public lighting are powered by solar panels...

Where your Nasi Kandar matters as much as your Char Koay Teow...

Where pre-war bungalows draped in creepers still whisper of cheongsams & monsoon rains...

Where history is given its due & context..

Where, even though it's Christmas and I am a Buddhist, I am proud to be Malaysian...

25/12/2025

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY!!

YES! IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR AGAIN!

SILLY SEASON!

TELLING THE PERSON YOU'VE BEEN IN LOVE WITH FOR EIGHT YEARS YOU LOVE THEM!

HAVING CAKE WITH NEIGHBOURS!

RE-READING THE ENTIRE MR MEN SERIES!

STIR-FRIED BRUSSELS SPROUTS!

WATCHING HANS GRUBER FALL!

HUGGING A TREE!

Time to thank all those who worked with you & supported you & stood by you this year...

SO, TO ALL OF YOU OUT THERE, A GAZILLION THANK YOUS!!

AND AS ALWAYS, WORK TOWARDS ANOTHER HAPPY, HEALTHY & PRODUCTIVE NEW YEAR!