Dr. Francisco A. Arabia - What Is Cardiothoracic Surgery?
Francisco A. Arabia, MD, serves as Surgical Director of Cedars-Sinai's Mechanical Circulatory Support Program and is an acting professor of surgery at the medical center. Certified by the American Board ...
What Is Cardiothoracic Surgery?
Cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in the surgical treatment of organs inside the thorax. Cardiothoracic surgeons specialize in surgical procedures inside the thorax, including the heart, lungs, and esophagus.
Heart Transplantation removes a damaged or diseased heart and replaces it with a healthy heart. Heart transplant surgery is a life-saving measure that has some risks. Careful monitoring, treatment, and regular medical care can help prevent or manage some of these risks. After the surgery, most heart transplant patients can return to their normal levels of activity.
Artificial Heart is a mechanical circulatory support device that replaces the lower chambers (ventricles) of the heart in patients who have advanced heart failure. Artificial hearts are commonly used to bridge the time to heart transplantation or to permanently replace the heart. Similar to a heart transplant, the surgery to implant an artificial heart is complex. Living with an artificial heart also requires planning and preparation.
Transmyocardial Laser Revascularization (TMLR) offers relief to patients with incapacitating angina that were poor candidates for other procedures. The surgery uses a high-powered carbon dioxide or another laser to interject a strong energy pulse into the left ventricle, vaporizing the ventricular muscle and creating a transmural channel. This allows blood to flow directly into the heart muscle without the need to travel through blocked coronary arteries.
