Closed Chest Bypass Performed
Two different groups of cardiothoracic surgeons have performed heart bypass procedures using a minimally invasive approach. To complete the surgery in this manner, the teams used the C-Port Flex A Anastomosis System from Cardica along with the da Vinci robot from Intuitive Surgical, as detailed in a press release from Cardica, Incorporated.
One of the teams was at Bon Secours Saint Mary’s Hospital in Richmond, Virginia. That team, led by Dr. Marc R. Katz, used the Cardica system to connect the left anterior descending (LAD) artery with the bypass graft. This procedure was the first occurrence of endoscopic completion of a coronary artery bypass procedure.
The surgical team commented on the ability of this tool, used in conjunction with robot-assistance, to change the approach to coronary artery bypass procedures. As with other surgeries completed minimally invasively, this approach reduces the amount of pain for patients post-operatively and improves overall patient outcomes, including a more rapid return to normal activities.
The patient at St. Mary’s fared well following the bypass surgery, requiring only two days of hospitalization. At this point, the patient has returned to completion of normal daily activities.
Soon after the completion of that procedure in Richmond, a team in Nashville, Tennessee at the Centennial Medical Center used the C-Port Flex A Anastomosis to complete a multivessel minimally-invasive bypass surgery. A 67 year old male patient underwent the bypass completed via four one-inch ports in the left chest. This same patient was seven days post-op from hip replacement surgery; the minimally invasive approach enabled the patient to return to rehabilitation activities for the hip the following day. The Nashville team was led by Dr. Louis A. Brunsting.
Use of minimally invasive approaches for cardiothoracic surgery, particularly bypass procedures completed with robotic-assistance, has been advanced with the development of tools such as the Cardica C-Port Flex A Anastomosis System. The device automates completion of anastomoses through both reproducible and reliable deployment. Further, the Flex A contributes to the completion of these procedures by eliminating the need to suture by hand. The tool ensures automated connection of the coronary artery and the vessel graft consistently, as well as reliably and quickly. This step is one of the key components in completion of coronary artery bypass grafting.
September 10, 2007 Related topics: New Technology & Innovation, Trends, Surgery, Cardiology