Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Research Articles

Robotic cardiac surgery

To outline current techniques in robotic cardiac surgery and to report the recent results. Robot-assisted surgery is the latest iteration toward less-invasive surgical procedures. Cardiac surgeons have slowly adopted robotic techniques into their armamentarium. In particular, robotic mitral valve surgery has evolved over the last decade and become the preferred method of mitral valve repair and replacement at certain specialized centers worldwide because of excellent results. Robotic single-vessel and double-vessel total endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting procedures have likewise been standardized on the beating and arrested heart. Other cardiac procedures are in various stages of evolution. Results to date have matched the outcomes of major trials for sternotomy-based procedures. In addition, patients may benefit from shorter hospital stays and experience faster return to full activity. Stepwise progression of robotic technology and procedure development will continue to make robotic operations simpler and more efficient, which will encourage more surgeons to take up this technology and extend the benefits of robotic surgery to a larger patient population. Long-term results are needed to determine whether robotic techniques could become the new standard in cardiac surgery.

Robotic Totally Endoscopic Triple Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting on the Arrested Heart: Report of the First Successful Clinical Case

Robotic technology enables "port only" totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB). During early procedure development only single bypass grafts were feasible. Because current referral practice for coronary bypass surgery mostly includes multivessel disease, performance of multiple endoscopic bypass grafts is desirable. We report a case in which a patient received a right internal mammary artery bypass graft to the left anterior descending artery and a left internal mammary artery jump graft to 2 obtuse marginal branches. The procedure was performed through 5 ports on the arrested heart using the daVinci S robotic surgical system. This is the first reported triple bypass grafting procedure using an arrested heart approach.

Axillary-Coronary Sequential Vein Graft for Total Endoscopic Triple Coronary Artery Bypass

We describe using an axillary-coronary vein graft for robotically assisted, total endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting. After constructing the proximal vein anastomosis to the left axillary artery under direct vision, the graft was brought into the thorax through a thoracostomy in the second left intercostal space. Under cardiopulmonary bypass with cardioplegic arrest, the distal anastomoses were completed using da Vinci (Intuitive, Sunnyvale, CA) robotic instrumentation through small portholes. This procedure marks a significant advancement in robotic total endoscopic revascularization by increasing the range of targets available for the total endoscopic approach, thereby enlarging the patient population suitable for robotic revascularization.

Is there a role for robotic totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass in HIV positive patients?

Performing cardiac surgery on HIV positive patients represents a significant risk of occupational exposure to surgeons and their support staff. In addition, the immunocompromized state of these patients may be a factor which could adversely influence the results. Totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) in HIV patients has not been reported. A male patient with HIV and Hepatitis C presented with three vessel coronary artery disease requiring surgical revascularization. Totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting was performed. Using the da Vinci surgical robot, the left and right internal mammary arteries were harvested and sutured to the second obtuse marginal branch and the left anterior descending artery respectively. The patient was discharged home on postoperative day six. At one month following the operation, the patient was asymptomatic and had returned to full activity without the need for sternal precautions. We describe the first case of completely endoscopic coronary surgery using the da Vinci system in an HIV patient. Double internal mammary artery grafting to the left coronary artery system was carried out successfully.

Factors influencing blood transfusion requirements in robotic totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting on the arrested heart

Robotic technology enables totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) procedures. These operations can be performed on either the beating or arrested heart. One challenge of the latter version is a potentially increased need for blood transfusions. We investigated factors associated with transfusion requirements in totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass on the arrested heart (AH-TECAB). A total of 161 patients, 124 males and 37 females, aged 59 (31-77 years) years, with European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) 1 (0-7) underwent AH-TECAB using the daVinci telemanipulation system. The Heartport/Cardiovations™ or ESTECH-RAP™ systems were applied for remote access perfusion and aortic endoocclusion. In all cases, the operation was carried out in moderate hypothermia and cardiac arrest using cold crystalloid cardioplegia mixed with blood. After 20 cases, the blood-transfusion rate dropped from 69% to 44%. The overall median number of transfusions was 1 (0-21). The following pre- and intra-operative factors showed a strong association with the application of packed red blood cells (PRBCs): preoperative haemoglobin level (p < 0.001), female gender (p < 0.001), shorter height (p < 0.001), lower weight (p < 0.001), long operative time (p < 0.001) and long cardiopulmonary bypass time (p = 0.001), intra-operative surgical problem (p < 0.001) and conversion to a larger thoracic incision (p < 0.001). Postoperatively, patients with longer ventilation time (p < 0.001) and those needing revision for bleeding (p < 0.001) also received significantly more PRBCs. We conclude that multiple factors are associated with increased blood transfusion requirements in AH-TECAB. However, the transfusion rate can be reduced with experience. Identification of these factors may help in avoiding the application of blood products in the next generation of AH-TECAB procedures.

Thoracoscopic IMA takedown.

In recent years, the field of minimally invasive cardiac surgery has grown rapidly beginning with the MIDCAB operation and evolving toward totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). It promotes the goal of decreasing surgical trauma while maintaining surgical efficacy. For MIDCAB, a limited anterior thoracotomy or mediastotomy have been proposed to harvest the internal mammary artery (IMA). However, complete graft harvesting of the IMA is difficult under direct vision in these circumstances and may necessitate costal resection and important chest wall retraction. Additionally, it carries the potential risk of kinking or coronary steal syndrome. Thoracoscopic harvesting of the IMA avoids these hazards. It permits complete dissection from the subclavian artery to the sixth inter-costal space (ICS) with section of all collateral branches issuing from the IMA without any traumatic retraction. The technique of IMA takedown described herein has been used regularly by us since 1995. Our current experience shows that it is safe and reproducible after a reasonable period of training. Furthermore, in the objective of performing a totally endoscopic and/or robotic CABG, thoracoscopic IMA takedown would be a prerequisite.

Anesthesia Management for Robotically Assisted Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting on Beating Heart

Anesthesia Management for Robotically Assisted Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting on Beating Heart

Anesthesia Management for Robotically Assisted Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting on Beating Heart

To outline the initial anesthetic experience for robotically assisted coronary artery bypass grafting surgery on beating heart using the da Vinci surgical system. Between February 2007 and September 2009, 76 patients received the surgery with the da Vinci S Surgical System. The crucial issue of anesthesia for the surgery is to deal with the hemodynamic compromise, hypoxia and hypercarbia relevant to one-lung ventilation (OLV), and intrathoracic insufflation of CO2 with positive pressure (CO2 pneumothorax). After initiation of OLV and CO2 pneumothorax, PaO2 and mixed venous saturation showed a significant decrease. Meanwhile, the SpO2 decreased to 92% in 14 of the 76 patients. In these patients, application of continuous positive airway pressure setting 5 to 15 cm H2O to the collapsed lung resulted in an increase in PaO2 from 59 ± 12 to 115 ± 23 mm Hg (P < 0.05). Moreover, at the beginning of CO2 pneumothorax, the most dramatic fall in mean arterial pressure and cardiac index was showed with an increase in mean pulmonary artery pressure and heart rate. The hemodynamic compromise was counteracted by transfusion and inotropes/vasopressors. Postoperatively, the average extubation time was 7.5 ± 3.1 hours, and median intensive care unit length of stay was 21 hours. One patient remained in the intensive care unit for 3 days for treatment of a postoperative pneumonia. There were two cases of new onset postoperative atrial fibrillation. All patients were discharged home 4 to 7 days after surgery. Anesthetic management for the procedures requires detailed knowledge of OLV and CO2 pneumothorax in addition to expertise required in conventional cardiac surgery.

The Present Role of Actuator Technology in Surgical Robotic Devices

Surgical robots have greatly facilitated numerous challenging medical procedures such as totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting. Despite the initial success of some classical robotic mechanisms (e.g., the da Vinci robot from Intuitive Surgical), limitations in the fundamental hardware impose constraints on the system capabilities and ease of use. While sensing, control, and computation hardware for robotically assisted surgery continue to improve, actuator technology remains relatively unchanged. This paper reviews the state of the art in actuators for surgical robotic devices and therefore elucidates the need for further actuator technology development. A physics-based actuator taxonomy is presented followed by a classification of the prominent research areas in surgical robotics. Using this taxonomic framework, we review the present role of actuator technology in surgical robotic devices.

Robotically-Assisted Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Objectives. Robotic surgery enables to perform coronary surgery totally endoscopically. This report describes our experience using the da Vinci system for coronary artery bypass surgery. Methods. Patients requiring single-or-double vessel revascularization were eligible. The procedure was performed without cardiopulmonary bypass on a beating heart. Results. From April 2004 to May 2008, fifty-six patients were enrolled in the study. Twenty-four patients underwent robotic harvesting of the mammary conduit followed by minimal invasive direct coronary artery bypass (MIDCAB), and twenty-three patients had a totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass (TECAB) grafting. Nine patients (16%) were converted to open techniques. The mean total operating time for TECAB was 372 ± 104 minutes and for MIDCAB was 220 ± 69 minutes. Followup was complete for all patients up to one year. There was one hospital death following MIDCAB and two deaths at follow up. Forty-eight patients had an angiogram or CT scan revealing occlusion or anastomotic stenoses (>50%) in 6 patients. Overall permeability was 92%. Conclusions. Robotic surgery can be performed with promising results.

Beating-heart totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting: Report of a case

This case report presents beating-heart totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) for single-vessel coronary artery disease. A 72-year-old man with isolated left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery disease was considered eligible for TECAB. Left internal thoracic artery (LITA) mobilization and subsequent off-pump revascularization applying the LITA to the LAD in a closed chest environment was performed using the da Vinci surgical system (Intuitive Surgical, Mountain View, CA, USA). The LITA was first harvested completely in a totally skeletonized fashion through three incisions 1-2 cm long in the left thoracic wall. The LAD was immobilized with the aid of a heart stabilizer. The LITA was then anastomosed to the LAD with 10 interrupted sutures of a Nitinol self-closing S15 U-clip device (Medtronic, Minneapolis, MN, USA) on the beating heart without the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. The time acquired to perform anastomosis was 20 min, and the total operative time was 5 h 34 min. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged 5 days after the operation. Beating-heart TECAB was successfully performed for this patient with single-vessel LAD disease. This approach may be an evolutionary step toward beating-heart multivessel TECAB.

Effectiveness and Safety of Total Endoscopic Left Internal Mammary Artery Bypass Graft to the Left Anterior Descending Artery

Totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has become a feasible option using robotic technology and remote access perfusion techniques. The aim of this study was to determine the progression of the procedure's performance in the currently largest single-center series of arrested-heart totally endoscopic CABG. From 2001 to 2007, arrested-heart totally endoscopic CABG was performed in 100 patients (median age 59 years, range 46 to 70; 81 men, 19 women). All patients received left internal mammary artery grafts to the left anterior descending artery using the da Vinci Surgical System. Remote-access femoral perfusion and aortic balloon endo-occlusion were used in all patients. The series was divided into 4 phases: phase 1 (patients 1 to 25), phase 2 (patients 26 to 50), phase 3 (patients 51 to 75), and phase 4 (patients 76 to 100). The conversion rates to larger thoracic incisions were 7 of 25 (28%) in phase 1, 2 of 25 (8%) in phase 2, 1 of 25 (4%) in phase 3, and 1 of 25 (4%) in phase 4 (p = 0.018). Operative times and hospital stays decreased significantly with each subsequent phase, and clinical outcome showed corresponding improvements. There was no perioperative mortality. For the whole patient series, 5-year postoperative survival, freedom from angina, and freedom from major adverse cardiac and cerebral events were 100%, 91%, and 89%, respectively. In conclusion, after an initial steep learning curve, completely endoscopic left internal mammary artery-to-left anterior descending CABG can be performed safely, with low conversion rates. The learning curve for operative times and improvements in clinical outcome continued even at 100 procedures.

Does obesity affect operative times and perioperative outcome of patients undergoing totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass surgery?☆

More and more patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) are overweight. This patient group suffers from wound healing problems more often than normal-weight patients. Therefore, avoiding sternotomy in obese patients by using an endoscopic technique could be a promising approach. Robotic technology enables totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) procedures. We investigated whether the intra-operative-times or perioperative-outcome after TECAB-procedure are negatively affected by obesity. Patients [n=127, 101 male, 26 female, median age 59 (31-77) years], undergoing arrested-heart TECAB procedure were enrolled. The median body mass index (BMI) in this patient cohort was 26 (19-38). In detail, 27 patients were normal-weight (BMI <or= 25 kg/m(2)), 67 patients were overweight (BMI 25.1-30 kg/m(2)), 29 patients were obese (BMI 30.1-33.9 kg/m(2)) and four patients were morbidly obese (BMI >or= 34 kg/m(2)). There was no correlation between BMI (1) left internal mammary artery (LIMA) takedown-time [Spearman-rank correlation coefficient (R)=0.02; P=n.s.], (2) lipectomy and pericardiotomy-time (R=0.042, P=n.s.), (3) total operative-time (R=-0.083: P=n.s.), (4) cardiopulmonary-bypass-time (R=-0.012; P=n.s.), (5) aortic-endoocclusion-time (R=-0.055; P=n.s.), (6) mechanical-ventilation-time (R=0.001, P=n.s.), (7) length of ICU-stay (R=0.04; P=n.s.), (8) length of hospital-stay (R=-0.103; P=n.s.) or (9) occurrence of intra- and/or postoperative adverse events. In overweight, obese but also morbidly obese patients the TECAB procedure did not increase operative times or the rate of intra- or postoperative complications. This patient group, therefore, benefits from this less traumatic version of coronary surgery.

Motion Prediction for Computer-Assisted Beating Heart Surgery

Off-pump totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting is a milestone for cardiac surgery, and still a technical challenge. Indeed, the fast and complex cardiac motion makes this operating method technically demanding. Therefore, several robotic systems have been designed to assist the surgeons by compensating for the cardiac motion and providing a virtually motionless operating area. In the proposed systems, the servoing schemes often take advantage of a prediction algorithm that supplies the controller with some future heart motion. This prediction enlarges the control-loop bandwidth, thus allowing a better motion compensation. Obviously, improving the prediction accuracy will lead to better motion-compensation results. Thus, a current challenge in computer-assisted cardiac surgery research is the design of efficient heart-motion-prediction algorithms. In this paper, a detailed survey of the main existing prediction approaches is given and a classification is provided. Then, a novel prediction technique based on amplitude modulation is proposed, and compared with other techniques using in vivo collected datasets. A final discussion summarizes the main features of all the proposed approaches.

Robot-assisted cardiac surgery

Recognition of the significant advantages of minimizing surgical trauma has resulted in a substantial increase in the number of minimally invasive (MI) cardiac surgical procedures being performed. Synchronously, technological advances in optics, instrumentation and perfusion technology have facilitated routine totally endoscopic robotic cardiac surgery using the da Vinci((R)) telemanipulation system (Intuitive Surgical Inc). This technology has been applied to many cardiac surgical procedures, in particular, mitral valve repair (MVP) and totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB), allowing the surgeon to operate through 5 mm port sites rather than a traditional median sternotomy. In this rapidly evolving field, we review the clinical results of robotic cardiac surgery.

On-Pump Beating-Heart with Axillary Artery Perfusion: A Solution for Robotic Totally Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting?

Robotic totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) can be performed on the arrested heart or on the beating heart without heart-lung machine support. In high-risk patients or in patients where technical difficulties are expected with a complete off-pump approach, a beating heart concept with heart-lung machine support can be an important option. Femoral arterial cannulation is associated with additional risk of retrograde cerebral embolization, and axillary cannulation is an accepted method in aortic surgery. We describe a case where an axillary artery cannulation method was used for the first time in TECAB performed with the da Vinci telemanipulation system.

Poor Left Ventricular Function Is Not a Contraindication for Robotic Totally Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Robotic technology has enabled performance of totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECABG). Published series on TECABG were primarily performed in low-risk patients, and little is known about the outcome after totally endoscopic coronary surgery in patients with severely impaired left ventricular function. We report successful endoscopic placement of a left internal mammary artery bypass graft to the left anterior descending artery using the daVinci robotic system in a patient with a severely reduced left ventricular ejection fraction.

Totally Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting is Feasible in Morbidly Obese Patients

Development of robotic technology has enabled totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass grafting (TECAB) procedures. With complete preservation of sternal and thoracic stability, this operation would be an interesting option for obese patients, who are known to be at higher risk for deep sternal wound infection. We describe a case of successful totally endoscopic left internal mammary artery to left anterior descending artery bypass grafting using the da Vinci telemanipulation system in a patient who was morbidly obese. The patient underwent a so called staged hybrid coronary intervention with percutaneous angioplasty and placement of a stent to the right coronary artery.

Difficulties in Beating-Heart Totally Endoscopic Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: How to Handle the Problem Endoscopically

We describe 2 cases of successful conversion from beating-heart (BH) to arrested-heart (AH) totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass surgery (TECAB). The preoperative computed tomographic (CT) scan of the first patient showed significant artherosclerosis of the femoral vessels in both groins. Therefore we tried to avoid inguinal cannulation by performing an off-pump BH-TECAB. But the target vessel was strongly fissured, and bleedings from the surrounding tissue made anastomotic suturing impossible. Therefore we cannulated the groin cautiously and endoclamped the aorta. The preoperative CT scan of the second patient showed a soft plaque in the ascending aorta. Therefore we tried to perform an on-pump BH-TECAB to avoid clamping of the aorta. Even though we snared the target vessel, significant backbbleeding occurred. Therefore we performed endoclamping of the aorta distal to the aortic plaque. In both cases the following AH-TECAB procedure was performed successfully without any problems.

Case 3—2009 Robotically Assisted Cardiac Surgery

THE FIRST ROBOTICALLY ASSISTED totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass graft (TECAB) surgery was described by Loulmet et al1 in 1999. Since then, there continues to be a growing interest in this technique for performing minimally invasive cardiac surgery.2-11 Although the technique has been deemed safe and effective, these cases present unique challenges to the anesthesiologist and surgeon.12 These challenges include double-lumen tube (DLT) placement and prolonged one-lung ventilation (OLV), dealing with thoracic insufflation and its hemodynamic consequences, limited physical access to the patient, and technical difficulties with the robot itself.