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. 

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.

Patient discharged with total artificial heart for first time—goes 105 days while awaiting transplant

Total artificial heart recipients typically stay in the hospital. In this case, however, the patient was able to wait for a donated heart from the comfort of his own home.

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Family files lawsuit after transplant ends in tragedy—says son ‘got the heart of a meth addict’

A Florida family is suing Mayo Clinic for allegedly performing a heart transplant without communicating certain risks associated with the donated organ. Mayo Clinic has pushed back against those claims, saying it acted appropriately every step of the way. 

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Blood tests for signs of organ rejection made available for young heart transplant patients

The donor-derived cell-free DNA tests from CareDx are designed to limit the use of surveillance biopsies and other more invasive treatment options. These tests have been available for adult patients for years now.

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Cardiologists agree: Early TAVR or SAVR for asymptomatic severe AS limits strokes, hospitalizations

Two separate groups have published new research comparing early AVR with clinical surveillance for the treatment of asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis. Overall, the two groups found, early treatment was associated with multiple benefits—and no added risk of harm.

Corcym has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a new version of its Perceval Plus surgical aortic heart valve that includes the company’s advanced LANCELOT features.

FDA approves design updates for Perceval Plus surgical aortic valve

The valve's sutureless, collapsible frame was built to simplify implantation and help patients recover faster following surgery. This updated version features laser-cut details and was shaped using a zero-pressure fixation process.

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TAVR vs. SAVR: Real-world data highlight advantages of both techniques

The biggest differences, researchers noted, were found in the long-term outcomes of low- and intermediate-risk patients.

Douglas Overbey, MD, an assistant professor in the department of surgery at Duke University School of Medicine, checks in with 9-year-old Kensley Frizzell as she recovers from heart surgery. Image courtesy of Duke Health and Duke University School of Medicine.

Surgeons make history, perform world’s first living mitral valve replacement

The historic heart procedure was part of a series of operations that saved the lives of three young girls. “The whole situation is extraordinary, whether you look at it from the standpoint of a scientific breakthrough or the average person’s point of view,” one parent said. 

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Heart surgery during pregnancy: Tracking the safety of a rare, sometimes unavoidable, scenario

How safe is it to perform cardiac surgery on a pregnant patient? When should care teams try to deliver the baby first and then complete the procedure? A team of Mayo Clinic researchers addressed those very questions, and many others, in a new analysis. 

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