Cardiothoracic Surgery

Our skilled cardiothoracic surgical team treats a wide array of conditions, including:

• Aortic aneurysm
• Aortic dissection
• Atrial fibrillation
• Benign conditions of the esophagus
• Cancers, such as lung and esophageal
• Congestive heart failure
• Coronary artery disease
• Hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy
• Left ventricular aneurysm
• Mediastinal tumors
• Mitral, tricuspid and pulmonic stenosis
• Valve disease, such as aortic and mitral regurgitation

Our cardiothoracic surgeons are visionaries; continuously improving programs and procedures so that they can provide the best care at our center.

Advanced procedures offered at AU Health

Dr. Richard Lee, our chief of cardiothoracic surgery, specializes in cutting-edge procedures:

• Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR): A nonsurgical approach to treating aortic valve disease that cuts a patient’s hospital stay to less than a day and their recovery down from months to weeks.
• Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair and Replacement (Mitral Clip and Valve-in-Valve): This includes patients who have had previous valve replacement. AU Health is the only hospital in the region to perform this procedure.
• Transcatheter Tricuspid Program: A nonoperative therapy to repair leaks in the tricuspid valve.

Advanced Mechanical Circulatory Support Program

Board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon, Dr. Vijay Patel, and board-certified heart failure cardiologist, Dr. Stephanie Dunlap, have teamed up to develop our Advanced Mechanical Circulatory Support Program to provide complex treatment options to patients with few options.

• Adult ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation): A therapy used to support the heart and/or lung by adding oxygen to the blood outside the body. This allows the heart and lungs to rest so that healing can occur.
• Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) implantation: A therapy for patients experiencing advanced heart failure. A VAD is a mechanical circulatory support device that pumps blood from the hearts ventricles to the rest of the body.

In addition, we have pulmonologists, physician assistants, anesthesiologists, pharmacists, cardiac rehabilitation specialists and nurses as part of our team.