Type of Surgery

Information

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Last updated: 11/24/2009

Definition

Minimally invasive heart surgery refers to surgery performed on the beating heart to provide coronary artery bypass grafting. This technique is often referred to as MIDCAB, minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass; or OPCAB, off-pump CABG.


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2. Purpose

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This narrated animation shows what happens in a myocardial infarction or heart attack. It shows how a blockage of a coronary artery causes a heart attack, leads to heart damage, and may lead to arrhythmias (abnormal electrical activity of the heart).

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In traditional open heart surgery, a large incision is made in the chest, and the sternum must be broken (A). Minimally invasive surgery uses a much smaller incision between the ribs to access the heart (B). (Illustration by GGS Inc.) In traditional open heart surgery, a large incision is made in the chest, and the sternum must be broken (A). Minimally invasive surgery uses a much smaller incision between the ribs to access the heart (B). (Illustration by GGS Inc.)




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Other Information

Minimally invasive coronary artery surgery is also called limited access coronary artery surgery. It's being evaluated in several medical centers as an alternative to the standard methods for coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG). Like CABG, the surgery is done to reroute, or "bypass," blood around coronary arteries that are clogged by fatty buildups of plaque to improve the supply of blood and oxygen to the heart.


From http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4702

Other Information

Traditional Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) surgery has undesirable side effects that range from cognitive loss to increased hospital stays that are believed to be related to artificial heart pumps. In this project, we believe that if the heart were able to beat freely during surgery, these pumps would not be needed and it is possible that these side effects might be lessened.


-M. Cenk Cavusoglu

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