BHS Cardiothoracic Surgery

This operation is designed to bypass blockages that have developed in the arteries on your heart. This is intended to improve blood flow to your entire heart at rest as well as with exercise. The grafted blood vessel can come from a number of places in your body, most often an artery from under your breast bone or vein from your leg.

Valve surgery is performed to repair or replace damaged valves in your heart. This is needed when valves become severely diseased, either leaking (insufficiency/regurgitation) or restricted (stenosis). If valve replacement is necessary this can be done with either a mechanical or tissue valve. This decision will be made after a discussion with their surgeon.

To learn about TAVR, visit www.butlerhealthsystem.org/Services/Cardiology/TAVR-Transcatheter-Aortic-Valve-Replacement.aspx

An ascending thoracic aortic aneurysm is a bulging of the aorta that is located at the aorta as it comes out of the heart. To repair an aneurysm in this location requires open surgery (an incision in the middle of your chest and going through your breast bone) to replace your aorta with a graft.

Often aneurysms (abdominal and descending thoracic) are able to be repaired without open surgery. When endovascular repair is appropriate it can be done via the arteries in your groin and often require no incisions. This allows for much quicker recovery than traditional surgery. When deciding whether to recommend repair (and what approach is appropriate) your surgeon will review your testing and take into consideration the location & size of your aneurysm, how fast it has grown and your overall health.

PAD is when blockages develop in the arteries to your legs or arms and cause pain that interferes with your daily activities. To restore blood flow to the affected area a bypass or an endarterectomy can be performed. A bypass is when a graft (plastic tube or a vein taken from your leg) reroutes blood flow around the blockage. An endarterectomy is when the plaque build up is removed from a specific artery. After interviewing, examining and reviewing your testing your surgeon will determine what the appropriate treatment is for you.

Carotid endarterectomy is surgery that removes plaque buildup from inside a carotid artery in your neck. This surgery is done to restore normal blood flow to the brain to prevent a stroke.

Procedures can be done for treatment of many lung and chest related diseases. Sometime procedures require open surgical techniques and other times procedures can be done with a minimally invasive procedure known as a video assisted thorocoscopic surgery (VATS). The decision, of whether open or minimally invasive surgery will be performed, is made by the surgeon after interviewing, examining and reviewing your testing. These procedures are used to treat and/or diagnose lung nodules, mediastinal lymphadenopathy, interstitial lung disease, and pleural effusions to list a few.

Surgeries can be done that range from biopsy and staging to definitive treatment (resection). The approach that is most appropriate for you and your treatment will be decided by your surgeon after interviewing, examining and reviewing your testing.