Cardiac Surgery

Cardiothoracic surgery includes coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG), heart valve repair or replacement, left ventricular assist device (LVAD) placement, heart transplant, assisting in minimally invasive transcatheter valve structural heart procedures such as TAVR, left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion, septal myectomy, surgical ablation for arrhythmias, and reconstruction of the heart in congenial heart disease cases. 

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SAVR outperforms TAVR in patients with bicuspid aortic valves

BAV patients are often excluded from TAVR trials, creating uncertainty about the best way to treat that population when aortic valve replacement is required. To learn more, researchers tracked CMS data from 2018 to 2022, presenting their findings in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery.

Surgeons in Houston have performed the world’s first successful human implant of BiVACOR’s Total Artificial Heart (TAH) technology. The procedure was completed July 9, 2024, at The Texas Heart Institute at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. It was part of an early feasibility study (EFS) first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) back in December 2023.

‘Incredibly rewarding’: FDA expands total artificial heart study after early success

An additional 15 patients will now receive BiVacor's titanium total artificial heart technology as they wait for a permanent transplant.

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) programs can lead to significant improvements in patient outcomes after cardiac surgery, including shorter lengths of stay and reduced readmission rates, according to the experience of one North Carolina health system. The team at Atrium Health’s Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute launched the Atrium Health Perfect Care Initiative in 2018 as a way to provide consistent, high-quality care for patients following major heart procedures.

How one health system reduced lengths of stay, slashed readmissions after heart surgery

Remote patient monitoring helps clinicians track heart patients as they recover from major operations. One surgeon described the technology as a "game-changer," highlighting the confidence patients feel when they have "an extra set of eyes on them."  

Back in October 2024, heart surgeons with the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute in Morgantown, West Virginia, performed the world’s first robotic aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass (RAVCAB) procedure. Now, the team behind that historic surgery has shared its full story for the first time, publishing an in-depth look at the procedure in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, an official journal from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons.[1]

Heart surgeons detail world’s first robotic heart procedure of its kind

The care team behind the very first robotic aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass surgery has written about the experience in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery. The group discussed the development of the technique, how the patient was chosen for treatment and other key details.

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Cardiothoracic surgery linked to a lack of diversity, uneven salaries: What can be done?

A brand new analysis explored diversity, equity and inclusion within the specialty of cardiovascular surgery. It also included several recommendations for leaders looking to help create change and improve patient care.

Artivion, an Atlanta-based medical device company, has received a Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its AMDS Hybrid Prosthesis designed to treat DeBakey Type 1 dissections when malperfusion occurs. This HDE ensures select patients can be treated with the device before the FDA makes its final approval decision.

First surgical device of its kind granted key FDA exemption

This update helps ensure Artivion's AMDS Hybrid Prosthesis can be used to treat high-risk patients as the FDA makes its final approval decision. The news came as Artivion works to bounce back from a cybersecurity attack that occurred in November.

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TAVR/PCI bests SAVR/CABG when treating severe AS and complex CAD

Percutaneous treatment was linked to improved survival and fewer adverse events than surgery when patients presented with both symptomatic severe aortic stenosis and complex coronary artery disease. 

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More vulnerable, but still treatable: Frail heart patients benefit from PCI, CABG

High-risk patients are often treated with medical therapy alone instead of revascularization. However, new data make it clear that these patients can live much longer when treated with PCI or CABG.

Around the web

Several key trends were evident at the Radiological Society of North America 2024 meeting, including new CT and MR technology and evolving adoption of artificial intelligence.

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.