Watertown Stylist Ashley Veen Recovering After Emergency Open-Heart Surgery for Aortic Dissection, GoFundMe Organized to Help
- Steve Jurrens
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Northeast Radio SD News – Watertown, SD - A routine medical checkup turned into a life-or-death emergency for Ashley Veen, a former guest on Northeast Radio SD and a stylist at Prestige Salon in Watertown, South Dakota, after doctors discovered an active aortic dissection—a critical, life-threatening tear in her body’s main artery. Airlifted directly to the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis, Veen successfully underwent emergency open-heart surgery to replace her entire affected aortic root.
A Sudden Life-Flight to Minneapolis
Veen’s emergency unfolded rapidly following a routine echocardiogram that showed expansion in her aorta. After a follow-up CT scan confirmed the artery had begun to dissect, medical staff immediately instructed her to report to the nearest emergency room. Due to the high-risk nature of the tear, she was life-flighted to Minneapolis for specialized cardiac care.
During the extensive procedure, surgical teams replaced the compromised section of her aorta. Medical staff reported no complications, describing the delicate repair as a success. Veen has since been removed from her breathing tube, is alert, and is showing stable vital signs in the intensive care unit, where she will remain under close observation for at least two weeks.
Unmasking a Generational Silent Killer
The medical crisis stems from Marfan syndrome, a genetic connective tissue disorder that can cause dangerous dilation and tearing of the aorta. Veen was the first person in her family to receive a formal diagnosis, which occurred unexpectedly in 2024 during her pregnancy with her daughter, Harvey.
The diagnosis unlocked a tragic family mystery. Veen’s father passed away suddenly from an aortic dissection in September 2010 without ever knowing he carried the gene. Because Veen and her father lacked textbook physical markers for the disorder, it passed undetected through generations, also affecting her grandfather, aunt, and cousin.
“Harvey was the miraculous one who brought Ashley her diagnosis,” shared her sister, Whitney Goetsch. “Her pregnancy led doctors to discover the Marfan syndrome that had been silently running through our family line for generations, finally giving us an answer to decades of unexplained issues and losses.”
Community Support for the Road Ahead
As a familiar face at Prestige Salon and in the Watertown community, Veen faces an extensive rehabilitation process and will be out of work for several months. To assist with mounting medical bills and essential living expenses during her recovery, Goetsch launched a GoFundMe campaign.
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