Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery —Identifying Opportunities for Further Improvement in the Quality of Postoperative Patient Recovery

According to the American Heart Association, more than 1.5 million patients worldwide undergo cardiac surgery every year.1 Traditional approaches to these cardiac surgeries include incisions, such as median sternotomy or thoracotomy, which provide excellent surgical exposure. Unfortunately, each of these traditional incisions produces its own pattern of postoperative pain that may become chronic.2,3 Furthermore, patients often may have additional incisions to facilitate vascular access and/or vascular conduit harvesting, as well as chest tubes that may exacerbate an already painful procedure.

Source: Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia - September 15, 2020 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Bao Ha, Asad Ali Usman, John G. Augoustides Tags: Editorial Source Type: research