I am scheduled for May 6 to have to preform mitral valve repair , a Full maze ablation and left atrial appendage with This would involve a full sterotomy. ...Read more
I am scheduled for May 6 to have to preform mitral valve repair , a Full maze ablation and left atrial appendage with This would involve a full sterotomy. . We talked about a mini sternotomy with a smaller incision. But may have to treat the Afib later. Is it worth doing the full sternotomy being more invasive.
Robert Miller I had all of this done through OHS (Open Heart Surgery). To my knowledge, all of this can be done wit ... Read more
Robert Miller I had all of this done through OHS (Open Heart Surgery). To my knowledge, all of this can be done with minimal invasive surgery. Don't quote me on that. If you can get it done this way, great. Maze procedure might not completely fix things but is considered superior to ablation. There is a chance you might still need ablation later on despite having done the maze procedure. I was told, that when you do the maze procedure, later on new electrical signals can form new paths resulting in afib, atrial flutter, etc. However, the same can happen if you get ablation later (because you didn't do the maze procedure) and resulting in a second ablation. It's probably good trying to get it all done in one shot. Also note that each procedure results in scaring of your heart which is not a good thing (necessary to address the issue, though). You might want to discuss if during surgery both a heart surgeon and an electrophysiologist should be involved.
Richard Munson I had maze minimally invasive. Unless they lied.
J Alexander Lassally As I was told by trusted folk there is no real incentive to a Mini Sternotomy. A sternotomy is basica ... Read more
J Alexander Lassally As I was told by trusted folk there is no real incentive to a Mini Sternotomy. A sternotomy is basically a sternotomy so don't infer a penalty here... If anything, when it is a mini, they have to "stetch the s***" of of everything to get access so the full offers the panoramic view and is faster~! You are in good company.
Richard Munson Being 80 at the time, i was happy to get everything stretched. That might be a stretch though.
Mike Morabito I have heard that one so just a matter of 2 or 3 weeks of more precautions so why not do the best one ... Read more
Mike Morabito I have heard that one so just a matter of 2 or 3 weeks of more precautions so why not do the best one to give better access and a better outcome. Just seems like a large incision. Ouch Thank you all for responding
Dr. Joanna Chikwe is a world-renowned cardiac surgeon that has performed thousands of heart valve operations that include minimally-invasive techniques.
