Minimally Invasive Robotic Heart Surgery
If you need to have heart surgery, it’s important to know that many cardiac procedures today can be performed minimally invasively using robotically assisted technology.
In fact, one of the nation’s pioneers in robotically assisted cardiac surgery is right here at the Northwest Regional Heart & Vascular Center in Portland: Thomas Molloy, MD.
The benefits of minimally invasive, robotically assisted heart surgery
Compared to more traditional open-chest surgery – in which the surgeon must split the breastbone to access the heart – minimally invasive surgery is performed through a few tiny incisions between the ribs of your chest.
As a result, many patients experience these benefits:
- Fewer complications
- Shorter hospital stay
- Less pain
- Less blood loss
- Less time in intensive care
- Quicker return to regular daily activities
Which heart surgeries can be performed minimally invasively using robotic technology?
Robotically assisted surgery is applicable to many cardiac operations including:
- Mitral valve surgery
- Atrial fibrillation surgery (Maze or mini-Maze procedure)
- Septal defect closure
- Cardiac artery bypass graft (CABG)
- Removal of cardiac tumors
- Placement of epicardial pacing leads (pacemaker wires)
- Thymectomy (surgical removal of the thymus glands) to treat myasthenia gravis, a muscle weakness disorder
How is robotically assisted surgery performed?
In robotically assisted heart surgery, the surgeon duplicates the precise maneuvers performed in a traditional open-chest procedure using robotic arms instead of his or her hands. During this procedure, your surgeon works at a console and views the heart in a magnified, high-definition 3-D image on a video monitor. This gives your heart surgeon a better view of some parts of your heart than in open-chest surgery.
From the remote console, your surgeon’s hand movements are replicated precisely by the robotic arms at the operating table. These arms can move with even greater range of motion in a tiny space than the human wrist. A second surgeon and surgical team assists at the operating table, changing the surgical instruments attached to the robotic arms.
Am I a candidate for robotically assisted surgery?
Because each patient is unique, your surgeon will review your diagnostic tests and determine if you are an appropriate candidate for this type of surgery.
Would you like to learn more about minimally invasive robotic heart surgery in Portland? Please call to schedule a consultation: (503) 261-4430.