My watch list

Cardiothoracic surgery

Cardiothoracic surgery is the field of medicine involved in the surgical treatment of diseases affecting organs inside the thorax (the chest). Generally treatment of conditions of the heart (heart disease) and lungs (lung disease).

Additional recommended knowledge

Weighing the right way

Daily Visual Balance Check

Essential Laboratory Skills Guide

Cardiac surgery and thoracic surgery are separate surgical specialties, but are frequently grouped together as cardiothoracic surgery (primarily in the United States). Cardiac surgery generally refers surgery of the heart and great vessels, and thoracic surgery generally refers to surgery of the chest other than the heart. A cardiothoracic surgeon will perform surgery within the realm of both cardiac and thoracic surgery.

v • d • e Health Science – Medicine - Surgery - Cardiac surgery procedures (ICD-9-CM V3 35-37)
Coronary heart disease	Angioplasty - Coronary artery bypass - MIDCAB - Off-pump coronary artery bypass - TECAB
Heart valves	Aortic valve repair - Aortic valve replacement - Mitral valve repair - Mitral valve replacement - Ross procedure
Great vessels	Bentall procedure - David procedure - Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy
Myocardium	Cardiomyoplasty - Dor procedure - Heart transplantation - Septal myectomy - Ventricular reduction
Pericardium	Pericardiocentesis - Pericardiectomy
Congenital heart disease	Blalock-Taussig shunt - Fontan procedure - Norwood procedure - Atrial septostomy
Conduction system	Maze procedure - Pacemaker insertion

v • d • e Health Science – Medicine - Surgery - Thoracic surgery
Thoracic Surgeries / Surgical diseases of the thorax Mediastinoscopy, Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), Lobectomy (e.g. for lung cancer), Bullectomy (for a bulla in emphysema), Lung transplantation, Vascular, Aortic aneurysm, Aortic dissection