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Electrophysiology Study of the Heart
An electrophysiology study (EPS) of the heart is a test performed to analyze the electrical activity of the heart. The test uses cardiac catheters...

Finding a Surgeon
Finding a surgeon refers to the process of choosing a doctor with specialized training in one or more branches of surgery to perform a specific...

Heart Surgery for Congenital Defects
Heart surgery for congenitaal defects consists of a variety of surgical procedures that are performed to repair the many types of heart defects...

Microsurgery
Microsurgery is surgery that is performed on very small structures, such as blood vessels and nerves, with specialized instruments under a microscope...

Pacemakers
A pacemaker is a surgically implanted electronic device that regulates a cardiac arrhythmia.Pacemakers are most frequently prescribed when...

Choosing a Cardiac Surgeon
The first step in choosing a cardiac surgeon is to determine if you need a cardiac surgeon in the first place. A cardiac surgeon or cardiothoracic...

Choosing a Surgeon
While you will probably not be golfing with him or her anytime soon (nor would you likely want to!), you should learn a few things about the person...

Choosing a Heart Surgeon
If you are choosing a cardiac surgeon, chances are that you have a disease of the heart or blood vessels of the chest that cannot be corrected by...

What to Expect on the Day of Surgery
Surgery can be somewhat frightening even for the bravest among us. You are only partially clothed, everywhere you look people are dressed in masks...

Insurance and the Costs of Cardiac Surgery
Any form of cardiac surgery, regardless of the severity of the medical condition being addressed, should first be considered without any attention...

Recovering From Cardiac Surgery: Regaining Function
Heart surgery is a big step and, as far as surgeries go, it is a pretty major one. While recovery from heart surgery can be a long process, once...

Recovering From Heart Surgery - Wound Care
Heart surgery is one of the most invasive surgeries imaginable and can be a very trying time. You should anticipate a fairly long recovery period...

Will there be a robot in your operating room?
While this may seem like silly question, an ever-increasing number of surgeries are being performed with the assistance of a robot. Sound like science...

Open Heart Surgery Recovery – Pain Management
Open heart surgery is one of the most intense surgical experiences that one can endure and recovery can be quite extensive and protracted. Proper...

When Will Life Be Normal After Open Heart Surgery Recovery?
Because the process can take so long, you may think that life will never be normal again after open heart surgery. You may be right. It will likely...

Surgery Recovery Period
The period after your surgery, called the recovery period, is a very important part of your overall surgical experience. The ease with which you...

Chemical Stress Test
People that are having certain heart problems such as chest pain with exertion may be referred by their physician for a cardiac stress test. In a traditional...

Examining the Inside of the Heart - Echocardiogram
An echocardiogram, known by medical professionals simply as an “echo,” is an ultrasound test that can examine the inside of the heart...

Nuclear Adenosine Stress Test
When people hear the term nuclear they tend to get a bit nervous; however, a nuclear adenosine stress test is simply a way to detect abnormalities...

Diagnosing Heart Disease - Thallium Stress Test
Have you ever struggled with a recurrent medical problem at home but when each time you visit the physician, the symptoms were gone? Ischemic heart...

What is a Tilt Table Test?
The symptoms of lightheadedness or faintness are very common and they are a major reason for physician visits, especially visits to a neurologist...

Arterial Cannulation
Artery cannulation is a procedure in which an artery is cannulated or a tube of some sort is placed inside it. Unlike veins, arteries have thicker walls...

The Sengstaken-Blakemore Tube and its use
The Sengstaken-Blakemore tube is one of those medical devices that you hope you never need to have placed in you. The tube is used in emergency situations...

Bullectomy Information
A bulla (plural: bullae) is an air-filled pocket of lung tissue that can longer be expelled during expiration. Air moves into the lungs, but cannot move...

Treadmill Stress Test
A stress test is not a test to see how stressed out you are, but rather a cardiac stress test is a way for doctors to see how your heart responds to...

Beating Heart Bypass Surgery Information
Limb lengthening is a procedure that has been used for some time to correct certain physical birth defects. Common reasons for limb lengthening surgery...

Atrial Septal Defect Closure
The heart is divided into four chambers. The upper chambers are the atria and the lower chambers are the ventricles. The right side of the heart—right...

Ventricular Septal Defect Closure Information
The heart is divided into four chambers. The upper chambers are the atria and the lower chambers are the ventricles. The right side of the heart—right...

Closed Mitral Valvotomy
Closed mitral valvotomy is one of the oldest modern heart surgeries having been around for decades. With the advent of open heart surgery and balloon...

Double Valve Replacement
The left side of the heart—the left atrium and the left ventricle—have a tough job to do. The left side of the heart is responsible for pumping...

Surgical Arrhythmia Treatments
The heart's ability to pump blood depends on the coordinated action of four heart chambers. What controls this elegant series of heart muscle contractions...

Open Heart Surgery - ASD / VSD Closure
A hole in the heart is not just a line from a sentimental romantic movie, it is a real medical condition affecting thousands of newborns each year....

Removing Tumors - Curative Surgery
Simply put, curative surgery is a surgery that results in a cure from some disease. While many medical treatments simply reduce symptoms or slow the...

Treatment for Angina - Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization
While the heart pumps blood to the entire body, it cannot function without its own blood supply. This blood comes through coronary arteries that surround...

Information on Commissurotomy
A commissure has two main definitions: 1) the corner of the eye, lip, or labia OR 2) a bundle of nerves that cross from one side of the brain to the...

The Da Vinci Surgical System - Robotic Surgery Device
The da Vinci Surgical System is among the most commonly used robotic surgery devices used in the world today. Rather than being a "virtual reality"...

Noninvasive Surgery Info
Noninvasive surgery is a term that is applied loosely depending on the source. Strictly speaking, a noninvasive surgery or procedure is one in which...

Surgical Instruments Info - Surgical Graspers
Very few maneuvers in surgery are done without some sort of surgical instrument. Each step in a surgery-from initial incision to the final suture-is...