Cardiovascular Surgeon
The Hennepin Healthcare CardioThoracic Surgery program is committed to providing a full range of services that make life changing differences to patients. Utilizing a state-of-the-art intensive care unit and surgical suites, surgeons provide a complete continuum of care in the operating rooms as well as before and after any procedure.
Care is provided by the Heart Center team of cardiologists, rehabilitation specialists, dieticians, and educators to prevent further heart disease and promote a healthy lifestyle.
Surgery and Procedure Definitions
Atherectomy is a minimally invasive procedure of removing atherosclerosis, or plaque deposits, from a large blood vessel within the body. Atherectomy is commonly used to treat peripheral arterial disease of the lower extremities.
Catheter ablation is a procedure which uses long, flexible tubes that are inserted through a vein in your groin and threaded to your heart to correct structural problems in your heart that cause heart rhythm problems.
Coronary angioplasty is a procedure that opens the arteries of the heart. Coronary angioplasty greatly increases blood flow through the blocked arteries, decreases chest pain, reduces the risk of heart attack, increases the ability for physical activity and can also prevent stroke.
Coronary artery bypass, also known as open-heart surgery, is a surgical procedure performed to relieve chest pain and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease. Arteries or veins from the patient's body are grafted to the coronary arteries to bypass areas narrowed by plaque deposits and improve the blood supply to the heart muscle.
Coronary stent insertion involves a wire mesh tube which is placed through a tube to keep an artery in the heart open and improve blood flow after angioplasty.
Heart valve repair and placement involves inserting a synthetic mechanical or natural porcine valve into the heart to replace a defective or malfunctioning valve. Aortic and mitral valves are the most frequently replaced with artificial heart valves.
Limited access coronary artery bypass is a minimally invasive procedure and alternative to standard bypass surgery. Small incisions are made in the chest, as opposed to surgically opening the chest cavity. Arteries or veins from the patient's body are grafted to the coronary arteries to bypass areas narrowed by plaque deposits and improve the blood supply to the heart muscle.
