Dr. Brantigan | Vascular Surgery

Our practice is a nationally recognized referral center for the diagnosis and treatment of vascular disease. Our physicians and staff are committed to providing the best of medical care and to providing it sensitively and with compassion. We work as a team to accurately diagnose and treat these difficult problems focusing on understanding our patients and their needs. We are committed to the premise that each patient is an individual with individual needs and goals. Personal service as well as excellent medical care is our goal.

While you as a patient are the most important person in our lives, there are many other aspects of our lives that make us whole. We are glad you found us and hope you like our eclectic presentation. Even though vascular surgery is our passion, Dr. Brantigan's life is filled with many other pursuits, and there is more to life than medicine. Here you will experience the best of vascular surgery, and also city planning, historic preservation, medical and historic research and music. The Denver Brass is the best!

What We Do:

• Vascular disease diagnosis and treatment
• Non-invasive vascular laboratory testing
• Stroke prevention
• Carotid artery surgery
• Aneurysm surgery
• Evaluation and management of venous disease
• Reconstruction of veins
• Varicose veins
• Venous stasis ulcers of the legs
• Non-healing wounds
• Limb salvage surgery
• Arterial bypass surgery
• Thoracic Outlet Syndrome evaluation and treatment

We have a special interest in problems considered inoperable elsewhere.

Healthcare Staff

• Charles Brantigan, MD, FACS, FCCP
• Christopher J Morin, MD, MBA FACS, CPE
• Kristen Alix, RN, ANP, MS, CVN, CCRN
• Shawn Fortin, BS, RVT
• Billie Brown, Executive Assistant
• Tera Warford-Hodges, MA, Scheduler
• Jenasee J. Campbell, Patient Coordinator

Please Click here to request more information from Dr. Brantigan.

Healthcare Staff

• Charles Brantigan, MD, FACS, FCCP
• Christopher J Morin, MD, MBA FACS, CPE
• Kristen Alix, RN, ANP, MS, CVN, CCRN
• Shawn Fortin, BS, RVT
• Billie Brown, Executive Assistant
• Tera Warford-Hodges, MA, Scheduler
• Jenasee J. Campbell, Patient Coordinator

Please Click here to request more information from Dr. Brantigan.

Patient Testimonials
Hi Charlie,

On this Thanksgiving Day I am trying to thank the people who helped me get to the right place for care. This has been a long road - again - I knew something was wrong, but had to switch Dr's - Dr. Paul Grow is an FP who began coming to Benkelman from Imperial last March. The cardiologist who read my 24 hr. H.M. missed my SUT - but Dr. Grow didn't. After various meds failed, he was going to send me to Fred Miller, but that blew up, so thus the call to you. I always have faith that you will know what I need. "It's not what you know, but who you know" That rings true for me! Dr. Sellers was a man of few words, but he gained my trust right away. I hope you got a copy of his report.

My heartfelt thanks to you my good friend.

God Bless you & yours.
Sincerely, Deb Stute

Hi Chuck,

I just figured I would drop you a line to let you know how things are going. Yesterday I did my longest ride in almost a year and a half, 23 miles. It felt great to hammer again and be able to ride without my hands going numb and my arms and shoulders killing me. I have been riding quite a lot lately but yesterday was the first time I tried to do some actual long mileage. To say I am happy with the results so far would be a huge understatement.As far as my recovery I have hit a few speed bumps but overall things are progressing well. It seems sometimes the muscles don't want to cooperate and they get a bit painful if the knots are not massaged out at PT. I guess that's normal considering how weak they were allowed to get.

My lawyer contacted me (finally) to fill me in on what's going on with my case and to get some more info from me. He told me that they are making arrangements to get a deposition from you, the PT therapists, and everyone else pertinent to my case so I guess things might start moving along here after 2 years.I have a question to ask you since no one else can come up with an answer for me. Today I underwent an abbreviated physical capacity evaluation by my therapist because my LTD requested it. My therapist went real easy on me because he knows what stage I am at with my PT strengthening. I was able to complete the test up to 30 pounds at which he did not feel comfortable going any higher weight wise. Anyway, I had asked him what happens in cases like mine where I was able to pass the CPE back when I had full blown TOS and am sure I can pass it again now that the problems have been addressed. How does the insurance handle cases like mine? He was not sure but he did mention that people who have rotator cuff injuries are in the same boat. They can do small amounts of higher intensity labor, but if done regularly they will re-injure themselves. Any advice on this would be helpful, as the last thing I want to be told is that I am 100% capable to resume my job as an auto mechanic when I very well may never be capable of this sort of work.

Regardless of the outcome of all of this, I plan on going back to school, hopefully starting this winter. I'll probably take something computer related as that's something I have enjoyed as a hobby for a long time. I might as well make a profession out of it since I need to find a new one anyway. :)Finally, I just want to thank you again for giving me my life back. I hope you enjoy the upcoming ski season, hopefully next year Kim and I will be able to go out there and snowboard. Oh yea, one more thing...VOTE BUSH!! Hehe ;)

From air evacuated to our care in extremis:

Dear Chuck,

Not a day goes by that I don't thank you for saving my life. I hope you get some sleep this 15th of May [first anniversary]....Each day I count as a blessing--thanks to you. G... and I stopped by your roundhouse recently. Very interesting history. Thank you for letting me enjoy the great world around us.

From a patient Dr Brantigan came down from the mountains to see in the Intensive Care Unit when he was not on call.

Mrs. Charles Brantigan,

I would like to apologize as I am the patient who broke into your week end of skiing about the 14th of November. I understand your disappointment as I had to leave my family many times while working on the Rail Road. I was called to go to Rock Slides, Derailments, Wash outs etc many times. [this note was accompanied by a nice hand carved gift, and this man, a true participant in Colorado history lives on].

From a fellow surgeon who heard of the break up of the Vascular Institute of the Rockies

Subject: life its own self
Chuck,

"People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have. and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It never was between you and them anyway."

That is attributed to Mother Teresa, but I've been told it was written for a high school commencement address. (I choose to believe the latter.) It's on a poster framed beside the desk in my office. I often am reminded of you when I read it.

If I have succeeded at all in being kinder, harder working, more generous, and serving some good beyond myself, it is because I have watched people like you do it so religiously for so many years. You are and have always been a giant in our profession and in the Denver community, in my mind; and even now I judge my performance by the yardstick of your integrity and your sense of service.I wonder why so many heroes of the western world are cut down by associates and followers? For someone who has no sense of global responsibility and mission, it must be threatening to work closely with one who does have it.

In music, in medicine, in marriage, in creating your practice, in community service, you have always inspired me by your genius in remodeling your world to be a better place. I do not know how your present challenge will be met, but I have no doubt it, too, will increase your stature and presence, at least to those of us who truly see you.

Don't let the bastards get you down!

Hi Chuck,

I know in the past I have thanked you for the many things you have done for me. For giving me back a life, but most of all for saving my life!! But I don't think I can ever thank you enough for having the type of influence you have had on my children and especially my daughter! So you see, your work goes MUCH beyond the "doctor" things you do!!

By the way, Amy told me to tell you to not retire until she has a chance to work with you! One of the neurosurgeons I worked with once told me that, becoming a doctor is not really a decision one makes. It is in you to do it or it is not. That the true measure of a great doctor is one that would be willing to do their job without getting paid. That the difference between a "doctor" and a "great doctor" is that the great doctor makes the best of every challenge & learns from the lesson it had to teach. It think that is why you are such a great doctor!

Please Click here to request more information from Dr. Brantigan.