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Cardiovascular Surgery

With about 400 cardiac and thoracic great vessel surgeries performed annually, the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery is one of the leading institutions of its kind in Japan. Minimally invasive techniques such as off-pump bypass surgery without using a heart-lung machine have been applied to many patients.
Medical services
Prescheduled surgeries are per formed three days each week along with emergency surgeries. The department consists of three teams specializing in different areas: adult heart disease (ischemic heat disease, valvular heart disease, arrhythmia disorders, severe heart failure), aortic disease (thoracic aneurysm, aortic dissection, etc.); and congenital heart disease. Outpatient services are provided every week day.
Diagnosis and treatment policy
Treatment plans are determined at clinical conferences based on detailed examination and discussion. Joint conferences are also held regularly with the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and/or the Department of Pediatrics to discuss cases referred by other institutions.
Specialties
In our department above 90% of patients requiring coronary-artery bypass surgery undergo off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) surgery. In almost all patients with mitral insufficiency, valvuloplasty is performed. The Maze procedure is also frequently performed to treat arterial fibrillation. Our department is one of the departments in Japan where valve-sparing aortic root replacement is most frequently performed to treat annuloaortic ectasia. Graft replacement for aortic arch and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm that protects the brain and spinal cord are also performed in many patients. Using these procedures, highly successful surgical results have been achieved in patients aged 75 and older as well as in serious cases with complications. As for congenital heart disease, many surgical procedures such as the Norwood procedure, the Jatene procedure, and the Fontan procedure have been performed successfully for complex heart malformations. Minimally invasive surgery that takes appearance into consideration and surgery without blood transfusion are also performed. Our department has been approved as a heart transplant facility and has performed heart transplants for 237 patients (222 in Japan and 15 at overseas facilities) as well as ventricular assist device (VAD) surgery. We have the most successful VAD implantation record in Japan.
Target diseases
Angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, infective endocarditis, valvular disorder, atrial fibrillation, cardiac tumor, severe heart failure (cardiomyopathy), aortic aneurysm, aortic dissection, congenital heart malformation (atrial septal defect, ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, and complex hear malformation such as single ventricle and hypoplastic left heart syndrome).
Advanced treatments/ Specialized treatments
Homograft heart valve/artery
The use of homografts in treating severe infective endocarditis, prosthetic valve infection, infectious aneurysm, graft infection, and congenital heart disease allows us to achieve successful treatment outcomes.
Ventricular assist device
Implantable ventricular assist device surgery has been in more than about 300 cases performed to treat severe heart failure. In addition, aggressive medication and rehabilitation programs are also provided so that the patient can be weaned from their artificial heart.
Heart transplantation
222 patients (the largest number in Japan) underwent heart transplants for their severe heart failure performed by our heart surgeons. Ten-year survival rate is 89%, which is one of world-best results.
Minoru Ono
Departments/Divisions
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery & Department of Cooperative Unit of Medicine and Engineering Research
Titles
M.D. , Ph.D.
Expertise/Specialties
Adult Cardiac Surgery, Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery, Robotic Cardiac Surgery, Mitral Valve Plasty, Off-pump Coronary Artgery Bypass Surgery, Ventricular Assist Device, Heart Transplantation
Research Interests
Surgical Treatment of End-stage Heart Failure (Ventricular assist device, Heart transplantation, Mitral complex plasty), Device Development for Minimally Invasive Surgery, Regenerative Medicine
Languages
Japanese/English
Areas of expertise, treatment and examination methods
Diseases
- Ischemic heart disease
- Valvular heart disease
- Severe heart failure (such as idiopathic and ischemic cardiomyopathies)
- Infective endocarditis and aneurysms
- Thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissection
- Complex cardiac anomalies, such as hypoplastic left heart syndrome
Treatment methods
- Off-pump or beating-heart coronary artery bypass grafting
- Mitral valvuloplasty and valve-sparing aortic root replacement
- Cardiac transplantation and auxiliary artificial heart
- Curative treatment of infection, using allograft heart valves and blood vessels
- Arch replacement and low-risk surgical procedures for extensive aortic aneurysms
- Norwood and Fontan procedures
- Transcatheter aortic valveimplantation
Numbers of major operations and treatments performed (total number of cardiovascular surgeries: 344)
Name of operation/treatment | Number (including complex surgical procedures) |
---|
1 | Coronary artery bypass grafting | 60 |
2 | Valve replacement and formation | 61 |
3 | Surgery for thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissection | 51 |
4 | Auxiliary artificial heart installation and removal | 47 |
5 | Valve-sparing aortic root replacement | 6 |
6 | Heart transplantation | 6 |
7 | Stent grafting | 4 |
8 | Fontan and Glenn procedures | 15 |
9 | Norwood procedures | 1 |
(January to December, 2014)