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Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery
The Johns Hopkins Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgical Program offers several operations using minimally-invasive approaches:
- Mitral Valve Repair
- Aortic Valve Replacement
- Tricuspid Valve Repair or Replacement
- Atrial Septal Defect/Patent Foramen Ovale Closure
- Biventricular Epicardial Pacing Lead Placement
- Surgical Radiofrequency Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation
In 2003 Johns Hopkins surgeons performed the hospital's first minimally-invasive robotic heart operation, placing a biventricular pacemaker lead in a patient with ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy . This team subsequently performed Hopkins’ first robotic “open-heart” operation, successfully repairing the mitral valve of a 78 year old man. Operations are performed using much less invasive incisions than those used with the standard sternotomy approach. Compared to standard open-chest cardiac surgery, these minimally-invasive techniques involve less pain, fewer wound complications, shorter hospital stays, superior cosmesis, and faster recovery times for patients.