Cardiovascular Surgery News and Research

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Open-heart bypass surgery is not an arduous operation, says Loyola surgeon

Less than two months before his daughter Lauren's wedding, Tom Koegler underwent a quadruple bypass heart surgery at Loyola University Medical Center.

19 Aug 2015

Loyola implants new percutaneous aortic heart valve that does not require open surgery

Loyola University Medical Center is the first center in Illinois to implant a new percutaneous aortic heart valve that does not require open heart surgery.

19 Aug 2015

Music therapy reduces anxiety in women undergoing surgical breast biopsies

A first-of-its-kind study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology finds that music therapy lessened anxiety for women undergoing surgical breast biopsies for cancer diagnosis and treatment.

18 Aug 2015

Arterial shunt in hybrid palliation better for hypoplastic left heart syndrome treatment

Children born with the major congenital heart defect hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) often must undergo a series of corrective surgeries beginning at birth. While most have the standard three-stage Norwood procedure, a hybrid strategy has been introduced to offset some disadvantages associated with the Norwood surgeries. In a report in The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, investigators compare whether outcomes can be improved if an arterial shunt is used as a source of pulmonary blood flow rather than the more conventional venous shunt as part of the hybrid strategy of HLHS surgical reconstruction.

14 Aug 2015

Delaying surgery until clinical triggers emerge leads to increased mortality in patients with mitral regurgitation

Patients with mitral regurgitation face a dilemma of whether to undergo corrective surgery early, when they might have no or few symptoms, or wait until their condition worsens. Current guidelines allow for watchful waiting until certain symptoms appear that would then "trigger" the decision to proceed with surgery.

12 Aug 2015

St. Luke’s surgeons first to perform percutaneous Mitral Valve Repair using MitraClip technology

Arthur Decheser said the “doctors were dancing” last week after they successfully used a new device to stop his mitral valve from leaking.

11 Aug 2015

Intraoperative fluorescent imaging detects lung adenocarcinoma during pulmonary resection

More than 80,000 people undergo resection of a pulmonary tumor each year, and currently the only method to determine if the tumor is malignant is histologic analysis. A new study reports that a targeted molecular contrast agent can be used successfully to cause lung adenocarcinomas to fluoresce during pulmonary surgery.

30 Jul 2015

Researchers develop novel technique to generate activated T cells to tackle advanced melanoma

T cells from patients with melanoma can trigger a protective immune response against the disease according to a new study out of University Hospitals Case Medical Center Seidman Cancer Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

8 Jul 2015

Statins benefit patients undergoing major lung resection, lower major complications

Statins have been shown to reduce complications from cardiovascular surgery. To determine whether statins might also help those undergoing major lung surgeries, a team at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center conducted a well-designed study that randomized patients to receive either a statin or placebo before and after surgery.

23 Jun 2015

Implantable antibiotic-laden sponges help prevent sternal wound infections during cardiac surgery

Cardiac surgeons often "crack open" the flat bone that forms the middle front section of the chest, known as the sternum, in order to reach important structures. When a sternal wound infection (SWI) occurs, serious complications and even death may result. Implanting antibiotic-laden sponges between the sternal halves before closure has been adapted to prevent infections.

12 Jun 2015

Physicians at UH Case Medical Center implant revolutionary device to treat right ventricular heart disease

University Hospitals Case Medical Center physicians in the Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute were the first in the state of Ohio to implant a revolutionary device to treat right ventricular heart disease.

5 Jun 2015

ASCO 2015: UH Seidman Cancer Center researchers present data from several new studies

Researchers from University Hospitals Case Medical Center Seidman Cancer Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine will present data from several new studies, including a study evaluating a potential novel combination treatment for cancer patients with advanced solid tumors and a first-of-its-kind analysis of gene mutations in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), at the 51st American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.

1 Jun 2015

Study finds new colon cancer screening as promising alternative to colonoscopy for African Americans

In a first-of-its-kind clinical trial, physician-scientists at University Hospitals Case Medical Center Seidman Cancer Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine found that a new non-invasive technology for colon cancer screening is a promising alternative to colonoscopy for African Americans.

19 May 2015

Patients with operable early-stage NSCLC could achieve better overall survival rates with SABR

Patients with operable stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) could achieve better overall survival rates if treated with Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR) rather than the current standard of care -- invasive surgery -- according to research from a phase III randomized international study from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

15 May 2015

Lung cancer surgery patients at higher risk of developing venous thromboembolism

New evidence suggests that lung cancer surgery patients are at higher risk of developing venous thromboembolism, including deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), than previously thought, with elevated risks of complications or death. When thromboemboli occur, they may be asymptomatic or attributed to post-surgical pain or complications, and may reflect both the lung cancer itself as well as compromised lung function after surgery.

29 Apr 2015

Advances in thoracic surgery: an interview with Dan Wildman, VP Global Franchise Strategy & Innovation- Ethicon

Without a doubt, one of the most significant developments in thoracic surgery was the advent of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery or VATS in the 1990s...

22 Apr 2015

Clinical trials show benefits of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic strokes

Anthony J. Furlan, MD, Chairman of Neurology and Co-Director of the Neurological Institute at University Hospitals Case Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, who writes an accompanying editorial for five studies about endovascular stroke therapy published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM.org">NEJM.org April 17), says these randomized clinical trials represent a breakthrough in showing the benefits of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic strokes.

20 Apr 2015

UH Seidman Cancer Center uses SpaceOAR System to perform first-ever prostate cancer treatment

The radiation oncology team at UH Seidman Cancer Center at UH Geauga Medical Center performed the first-ever prostate cancer treatment on April 3 using a newly approved device. The device, called SpaceOAR System, enhances the efficacy of radiation treatment by protecting organs surrounding the prostate. The device, a temporary injectable gel, received FDA clearance on April 1.

16 Apr 2015

Latest findings regarding nitric oxide offer new avenues to save lives

Professor Jonathan Stamler's latest findings regarding nitric oxide have the potential to reshape fundamentally the way we think about the respiratory system - and offer new avenues to save lives. It may be time to rewrite the textbooks.

13 Apr 2015

HeartWare International gets approval to market HeartWare Ventricular Assist System in Canada

HeartWare International, Inc., a leading innovator of less invasive, miniaturized circulatory support technologies that are revolutionizing the treatment of advanced heart failure, today announced that it has received approval from Health Canada, the country's federal department responsible for helping Canadians maintain their health, to market the HeartWare Ventricular Assist System as a bridge to heart transplantation in patients with end-stage heart failure.

9 Apr 2015