Although a growing number of heart conditions can be treated with medicine or minimally invasive procedures, in many situations surgery remains the best way to definitively treat problems.
The heart surgeons who practice at Mission are well known for the quality of their work and their cutting-edge expertise. Other heart surgeons have come to Asheville from around the nation and the world to learn from them. To meet them, visit the website of their practice, Asheville Heart (formerly Asheville Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons.)
Making Your Surgery Easier 
Partial sternotomy is a surgical approach often used at Mission during heart valve repair. It requires smaller incisions than a traditional sternotomy. Patients receiving this procedure typically heal faster and experience less discomfort.
Minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass (Mid-CAB) uses a small incision in the side of the patient's chest to provide access to the heart for repair, instead of going through the sternum, or breastbone.
Our surgeons work to minimize the time patients spend on bypass. Patient benefits include faster recovery times.
Vein harvesting for bypass surgery is done to minimize patient discomfort and maximize the life of the graft.
Mission heart surgeons use radial arteries whenever possible, rather than veins from the leg, because arteries stay open (in medical terms, patent) longer.
If an artery cannot be used, the harvesting of the saphenous vein in the leg is done by endoscopic vein harvest, which is performed within the vein and does not require as large an incision. For the patient this means:
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decreased pain
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fewer wound complications
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minimal tissue disruption
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quicker recovery time
Valve repair and replacement
Heart valve disease robs patients of vitality, and can be life-threatening. The best surgical treatment is repair of the patient's defective valve - not replacement - because it fixes the problem and the patient does not have to take medicine the rest of his or her life. But this approach demands an extremely skilled surgeon, so it is less commonly performed than replacement.
At Mission, 80 percent of valves are treated using repair. At most other hospitals, including other heart centers, the majority of patients receive a replacement - and have to live on medication the rest of their lives.
Our surgeons often use the "Ross Switchover," a procedure that replaces the aortic valve with the patient's pulmonary valve. The pulmonary valve is then replaced with a prosthetic.
Atrial fibrillation is treated at Mission both surgically and in the electrophysiology lab. Mission was one of the first hospitals in the nation to use the latest surgical technology, Epicor MAZE, for ablation during surgery to stop atrial fibrillation. In this procedure, electronic pathways causing fast heart rates are surgically interrupted. Mission cardiovascular surgeons recently published findings showing that atrial fibrillation can be safely and effectively treated with ultrasound when it is performed at the same time as other heart surgery procedures such as coronary artery bypass without added risk, and some benefit.
Thoracic aortic aneurysm & dissection are life-threatening medical emergencies. At Mission, emergency physicians, cardiovascular thoracic surgeons, and vascular surgeons have worked together to provide fast, coordinated response for patients.
If the aorta is dissecting, just beginning to leak blood, Mission's vascular surgeons now seal the aneurysm from within using endovascular repair. This requires small incisions. If the aorta is already ruptured, the patient's chest must be opened to stop the hemorrhage. At Mission, this is usually done using the advanced David Procedure.
Transmyocardial laser revascularization (TMR) is used to relieve angina. This procedure uses a computer-directed laser to fire many small holes into the heart muscle, creating channels for new circulation. The tissue heals with healthy new blood vessels that help restore circulation.
DOR procedure to improve heart pump efficiency is another innovative treatment where surgeons change the shape of the ventricle that has been damaged due to progressive heart failure. Parts of the heart that have been damaged are tucked away surgically, so the healthy tissue can function more vigorously.
