Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery

Doctors at Apollo Hospitals use minimally invasive techniques to perform multiple graft heart bypass surgery without cutting through a single bone. The new procedure is less painful and leads to faster healing, compared to conventional bypass. It is the first time in India that multiple grafts have been put at the back side of the heart through minimally invasive coronary surgery.

Minimally invasive surgery is performed through a small incision, often using specialized surgical instruments. The incision is about 3 – 4 inches instead of the 6-8 inch incision required for traditional surgery.

The benefits of minimally invasive surgery include

• A smaller incision
• A smaller scar
• Reduced risk of infection
• Less bleeding
• Less pain and trauma
• Decreased length of stay in hospital after the procedure: the average stay is about three days after minimally invasive surgery, while the average stay after traditional heart surgery is five days.
• Decreased recovery time: the average recovery time after minimally invasive surgery is 2 – 4 weeks; while the average recovery time after traditional surgery is 6 – 8 weeks.

Types of minimally invasive cardiovascular surgeries include

• Valve surgery
• Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery
• Epicardial lead placement: placement of leads for biventricular pacemakers (cardiac resynchronization therapy)
• Atrial fibrillation
• Minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass graft (MID CABG) surgery is an option for some patients who require a left internal mammary artery bypass graft to the left anterior descending artery. A small, 2 – 3 inch incision is made in the chest wall between the ribs, whereas the incision made during traditional CABG surgery is about 6 – 8 inches long and is made down the center of the sternum (breastbone).