Specialty: Vascular Surgery
Board Certified: Vascular Surgery, General Surgery
Special Expertise: Endovascular Surgery, RoboticSurgery, Peripheral Artery Disease, Limb Salvage, Carotid Disease, Aortic And Peripheral Aneurysms, Deep Vein Thrombosis, Pulmonary Embolism, Dialysis Access
Memberships: Society Of Vascular Surgery, Distinguished Fellow; American College Of Surgeons, Fellow; American Medical Association; Florida Vascular Society
Hospital Affiliations: Delray Medical Center, St. Mary's Medical Center - West Palm Beach
Patients needing vascular treatment no longer have to leave South Florida to get the best care in the nation. Joseph J. Ricotta, M.D., MS, DFSVS, FACS, is one of the country’s top vascular and endovascular surgeons and he’s located in Delray Beach.
Dr. Ricotta and his team at Prime Vascular Institute offer a full spectrum of vascular care using the most up-to-date technology and treatment options.
“We do everything from injecting spider veins to treating aneurysms,” says Dr. Ricotta. “We have every tool that you would find at some of the nation’s top hospitals.”
Dr. Ricotta is National Director for Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy for Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, and Chairman of the Department of Vascular Surgery at Delray Medical Center. A native of western New York, Dr. Ricotta grew up in a medical family. Both his father and grandfather were surgeons. He continued that tradition, training and working at leading institutions such as Yale, Johns Hopkins, Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic.
In 2015, Dr. Ricotta brought the ability to perform procedures that were not previously available in South Florida. He was the first in the U.S. to use a robotic arm to perform minimally-invasive vascular surgery, which in most cases, allows patients to go home the same day.
Dr. Ricotta is an innovator in the treatment of carotid disease and is the first in Florida to perform the TCAR (transcarotid artery revascularization) procedure, reversing blood flow away from the brain while the physician operates.
“This is a minimally-invasive procedure to clear plaque from the carotid artery and the risk of stroke is significantly less than more traditional procedures,” says Dr. Ricotta, who was preparing to perform his 200th TCAR procedure and who has made Delray Medical Center a national TCAR center of excellence.
Dr. Ricotta also specializes in preventing leg amputations and treating life-threatening blood clots and pioneered renowned limb-preservation and pulmonary embolism treatment programs in Delray Beach.
Dr. Ricotta founded the FAU Vascular Surgery Fellowship and is a professor of surgery at FAU where he is training future vascular surgeons. He has authored more than 200 publications and delivered more than 350 lectures.