Heart surgeons affiliated with Memorial Hermann offer a comprehensive array of treatments for heart valve disease, including minimally invasive robotic surgery for the repair and replacement of mitral, aortic and tricuspid valves. Robotic heart valve surgery is performed through tiny incisions in your chest through which the surgeon inserts small robotic arms and a small camera. The surgeon manipulates the robotic arms to perform the procedure while viewing magnified images on a computer console. Compared to more conventional methods, robotic surgery can reduce your risk of complications as well as hospitalization and recovery times.
Mitral valve surgery is the most commonly performed robotic cardiac surgery. When the mitral valve (located between the heart’s left atrium and left ventricle) malfunctions, the valve can leak (regurgitate) or narrow (stenosis). If left untreated, mitral valve disease can lead to fluid buildup in the lungs or to atrial fibrillation (AFib). Robotic heart surgeons affiliated with Memorial Hermann are repairing and replacing diseased mitral valves robotically. And some patients with longstanding or difficult to manage AFib are benefitting from a new procedure called a robotic Convergent procedure.
The tricuspid valve, also known as the right atrioventricular valve, controls the flow of blood from your heart’s top chamber (right atrium) to the bottom chamber (right ventricle). When the tricuspid valve is damaged or diseased, blood can flow in the wrong direction, making it harder for the heart to send blood to the lungs and the rest of the body. When the tricuspid valve leaks, narrows (or is blocked) or is malformed, surgery may be required to repair or replace the valve, and robotic surgery is an option.
Robotic aortic valve surgery for aortic stenosis is one of the latest developments in the field of minimally invasive cardiac surgery. Aortic stenosis occurs when the heart’s aortic valve becomes too narrow, a common but serious heart-valve disease that is often caused by the aging process. The heart specialists affiliated with Memorial Hermann were pioneers in the development of the minimally invasive transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) treatment for aortic stenosis. Now they’re at the forefront of robotic surgery for aortic valve disease.
Compared to traditional, open-heart surgery, robotic cardiac surgery is much less invasive, typically allowing you to go home from the hospital sooner. And you can recover and return to work and normal activities more quickly. In addition, following surgery, there are minimal restrictions placed on your activities, including lifting and driving.
Any type of cardiac surgery has associated risks, including bleeding, infection, damage to the heart, development of arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) and stroke. In addition, valve replacement surgery carries the risk of failure of the replacement valve. But robotic surgery, as compared to traditional, open-heart surgery, can minimize some of these risks.
Robotic cardiac surgery is a complex procedure that should be trusted to an experienced, specially trained surgeon. The heart specialists affiliated with Memorial Hermann can assess your condition to determine if robotic cardiac surgery is right for you, even providing you with a second opinion.
To learn more about robotic cardiac surgery, visit Find a Doctor to schedule an appointment.
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