Minimally Invasive Surgery

Newer, Less-Invasive Techniques Aim for Easier Recovery, Improved Outcomes

Heart surgery. The words conjure images of a hushed surgical suite, hovering doctors, a draped patient, an open chest and an exposed heart. However, as imaging techniques continue to improve, more often this simply isn't the case, notes John Marbarger, M.D., chair of the Department of Heart and Vascular Services and the Department of Surgery at St. John's Mercy.

"Advanced imaging means smaller incisions, which can translate to decreased pain, shorter recovery times and less scarring," Dr. Marbarger says.

Instruments and Imaging
Video-assisted surgery is one new technique available at St. John's Mercy that doctors can use to minimize incisions and still achieve great outcomes. Many procedures once requiring the more severe breastbone separation can now be done through two- to three-inch incisions at the left and right sides of the chest. Cameras inserted into the chest cavity feed real-time images to an operating room television.This lets doctors see the heart while performing surgery with instruments custom-made for video-assist procedures.

"It's like the heart structure is five inches from the doctor's nose," says Dr. Marbarger. This up-close-and-personal heart view can improve access during delicate surgeries such as mitral valve repair, which doctors at St. John's Mercy are helping to perfect.

Earlier Intervention Can Improve Outcomes
Because many advanced procedures are, on the whole, less traumatic for cardiac surgery patients, doctors are now able to correct some common conditions long before they do permanent damage.

"In the past, doctors were forced to wait to subject patients to traumatic open-heart procedures until conditions reached a certain threshold," says Ed Savage, M.D., medical director for Heart and Vascular Services and a cardiothoracic surgeon who is new to the staff of St. John's Mercy. Dr. Savage literally wrote an interactive teaching manual on mitral valve repair. "Minimally invasive approaches are improving quality of life and helping increase longevity," he continues. "Repairing mitral valves before heart failure, the insertion of permanent assist devices to protect those at risk for attack, even heart replacements, we'll be seeing important advances in these areas in the next five years," says Dr. Savage.

Dr. Marbarger agrees. "With our excellent staff and state-of-the-art facilities, the St. John's Mercy Heart Hospital will remain at the forefront of these developing technologies and less-traumatic surgeries. And as we do so, we'll continue to improve comfort for patients and their families in the new hospital setting," says Dr. Marbarger.