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Open heart surgery

Heart surgery - open

Heart surgery is any surgery done on the heart muscle, valves, arteries, or the aorta and other large arteries connected to the heart.

The term "open heart surgery" means that you are connected to a heart-lung bypass machine, or bypass pump during surgery.

Your heart is stopped while you are connected to this machine.
This machine does the work of your heart and lungs while your heart is stopped for the surgery. The machine adds oxygen to your blood, moves blood through your body, and removes carbon dioxide.

Common types of open-heart surgery include:

Heart bypass surgery (coronary artery bypass graft -- CABG)

Heart bypass surgery

Heart bypass surgery creates a new route, called a bypass, for blood and oxygen to go around a blockage to reach your heart.

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Heart valve surgery

Heart valve surgery

Heart valve surgery is used to repair or replace diseased heart valves. Blood that flows between different chambers of your heart must flow through a...

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Surgery to correct heart defect present at birth

Correct heart defect present at birth

Congenital heart defect corrective surgery fixes or treats a heart defect that a child is born with. A baby born with one or more heart defects has ...

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New procedures are being done on the heart through smaller cuts. Some new procedures are being done while the heart is still beating.

Open References

References

Omer S, Cornwell LD, Bakaeen FG. Acquired heart disease: coronary insufficiency. In: Townsend CM Jr, Beauchamp RD, Evers BM, Mattox KL, eds. Sabiston Textbook of Surgery . 20th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders; 2017:chap 59.

Heart valve surgery - series

Presentation

<strong>Normal anatomy</strong><p>There are four valves in the heart: aortic valve, mitral valve, tricuspid valve, and pulmonary valve. The valves are designed to control the direction of blood flow through the heart. The opening and closing of the heart valves produce the heart-beat sounds. </p>

<strong>Indications</strong><p>Heart valve replacement may be recommended for: narrowing of the heart valve (stenosis) leaking of the heart valve narrowing of the heart valve (stenosis) leaking of the heart valve Valve problems may be caused by infections (rheumatic fever) or birth defects and may cause heart failure (congestive heart failure) and infections (infective endocarditis). The surgery is done while the patient is deep-asleep and pain-free (general anesthesia). An incision is made through the breast bone (sternum). </p>

<strong>Procedure, part 1</strong><p>Heart valve surgery is open-heart surgery. Tubes are used to re-route the blood away from the heart to a heart-lung bypass machine to keep the blood oxygenated and circulating while the heart is being operated on. </p>

<strong>Procedure, part 2</strong><p>Valves may be repaired or replaced. Replacement heart valves are either natural (biologic) or artificial (mechanical). Natural valves are from human donors (cadavers), modified natural valves are from animal donors (porcine: pigs) which are placed in synthetic rings, and artificial valves are made of metal or plastic. Natural valves rarely require life-long medication to prevent blood clot formation (anticoagulation), whereas artificial valves will require anticoagulation. The advantage of mechanical valves is that they last longer-thus, the tradeoff of lifelong anticoagulation in some cases is worth it to avoid a second valve replacement surgery. </p>

<strong>Procedure, part 3</strong><p>The ineffective mitral valve is removed and the heart valve replacement is sutured into place. </p>

<strong>Aftercare</strong><p>The rate of success of heart valve surgery is high and increasing. The operation provides symptom relief and prolongs life. The death rate varies depending on the heart valve and averages 2% to 5%. Approximately 2 out of 3 patients who received an artificial mitral valve are still alive 9 years after the surgery. Life-long anticoagulant therapy is necessary for patients with artificial heart valves. The clicking of the mechanical heart valve may be heard in the chest and is normal. The first 2 or 3 days following the operation are spent in an intensive care unit where heart functions can be monitored constantly. The average hospital stay is 1 - 2 weeks. A few weeks to several months should be allowed for complete recovery, depending on health before surgery. </p>

Heart valve surgery - series

Presentation

A Closer Look

Heart failure
(In-Depth)
Myocardial infarction
(Alt. Medicine)
Heart attack and acute coronary syndrome
(In-Depth)
Coronary artery disease
(In-Depth)
Atherosclerosis
(Alt. Medicine)

Talking to your MD

Self Care

Tests for Open heart surgery

Review Date: 4/13/2015

Reviewed By: Dale Mueller, MD, cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon, HeartCare Midwest; Chairman Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and Surgery, OSF St. Francis Medical Center; and Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery, University of Illinois, Peoria, IL. Internal review and update on 07/24/2016 by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Isla Ogilvie, PhD, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team. Editorial update 11/11/2016.

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997- A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.

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Multimedia Encyclopedia

Open heart surgery

Heart bypass surgery

Heart valve surgery

Correct heart defect present at birth