Heart surgeries without cutting chest bone come to India

A team of surgeons at the Bangalore-based BGS Global Hospital has successfully performed complex mitral valve repair through minimally invasive cardiac surgery.
 
The key benefits to the patient of such a surgery are incisions of 2-3 inches only as opposed to 8 - 9 inches in a traditional bypass surgery, without cutting open of chest bones, lower risk of infection, with the patient being able to start walking the day after the surgery and go back home in four- five days in most cases, the hospital says.

The surgical team at BGS has has also performed multi-vessel minimal invasive coronary artery bypass grafts with excellent results, it said in a media statement.

BGS Global Hospitals, part of the Global Hospitals Group, has launched the Centre for Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery yesterday, where such surgeries are performed.

Cardiothoracic surgeon at BGS, Dr Anand Subrahmanyam says, "Minimally invasive cardiac surgery is among the very recent advances in heart surgery and is done through a small 2-3 inch incision without cutting chest bones just below the left nipple in men and below the breast tissue in women.
 
"The space between the ribs is spread with special 'spreaders' and the internal mammary artery needed for the bypass harvested through this small opening. The bypass is done, using 'beating heart technique'. "
 
He added that mltiple bypasses, total arterial bypass, valve replacement and valve repair surgeries have been performed successfully with excellent results at the hospital. The chest is closed with simple sutures, meaning that no wires are used to stitch back the bones.

The advantages are -
. No chest bones are cut - preserved integrity of the chest
. 2-3 inch incision
. Minimised blood loss
. Reduced operative trauma
. Minimal risk of infection
. Greatly reduced post operative pain
. Rapid recovery, can go home within 4 days after surgery
. Back to work in 10-15 days
. Excellent cosmetic results with a small hidden scar

According to Dr Bharat Dubey, also from the hospital, "Multi vessel coronary artery bypass grafting using off-pump technique through minimal access and endoscopic vein harvesting minimises scarring and healing problems of the legs especially in diabetic patients. In young women, the incision is made in the fold of the breast tissue and this leaves a very small insignificant almost invisible scar giving excellent cosmetic results. Incision made during the minimally invasive cardiac surgery is about 3 inches in length, as opposed to a traditional bypass surgery in which the incision is about 8-9 inches in length."
 
"BGS Global Hospitals has successfully performed complex cardiac procedures including mitral valve repairs through minimal access surgery."