Groundbreaking Innovations in Surgery

Minimally invasive heart surgery reaping maximum benefits: With traditional open-heart surgery, the sternum is split and a bypass machine is used while the cardiothoracic surgeon operates on the stopped heart. Minimally invasive heart surgery is performed through small incisions, typically between the patient's ribs. V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA, Cardiothoracic Surgery, recently was interviewed by MySA.com regarding the techniques and benefits of minimally invasive heart surgery. Read complete story on MySA.com | SA Express News Video | More about Dr. Reddy For physician referrals, please call 210-358-4025. (2-23-09)

V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA &mdash New heart surgery promises shorter hospital stay: Seenu V. Reddy, MD, MBA, performs first-time minimally invasive heart surgery at Christus Santa Rosa. "This is a relatively newer technique," said Dr. Reddy. Instead of opening the patient's chest, a small incision is made in the groin. Wires and catheters are inserted through the incision, and will be used to insert a stent. Because this procedure is significantly less invasive than traditional heart surgery, it is especially useful for older patients who might not be in the best of health. Read story on WOAI | View WOAI Video | For physician referrals, please call 210-358-4025. (2-10-09)

Jeffrey McNeil, MD, USAF, researching synthetic blood products: In an effort to improve surgical outcomes, the Air Force Surgeon General, Wilford Hall Medical Center, and the UT Health Science Center San Antonio are collaborating in an ongoing research project at the Health Science Center's Research Imaging Center. Their research is testing whether a synthetic oxygen-saturated blood product can help the brain and other organs during major heart surgery, possibly providing a protective boost for patients who may be at risk for stroke or other internal injury. Read Express-News article | More about Dr. McNeil (1-15-09)

Daniel T. DeArmond, MD, discusses VATS on CNN: New technique reduces trauma of lung surgery. The less invasive VATS procedure for lung cancer can significantly decrease recovery time when compred to open chest surgery.
Read CNN article | More about Dr. DeArmond | More about VATS and DaVinci™ Robotic Surgery For physician referrals, please call 210-358-4025. (11-26-08)

Two year old Chinese boy alive thanks to new San Antonio charity - Pediatric cardiolothoracic surgeons repair hole in child's heart - "He had a very formidable defect," says John Calhoon, MD, Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery. "There was a blockage of blood flow to his lungs and a hole in his heart." The surgery was done last week, and now, Jian is back up and playing like a normal child. Read story on WOAI.com | More about HeartGift San Antonio (11-20-08)

DaVinci robotic surgery for early stage lung cancer: Dan DeArmond, MD, Cardiothoracic Surgery, explains precision robotic lung cancer surgery options: Patients whose lung cancer has been caught very early now have a minimally invasive surgical option at Christus Santa Rosa Northwest — da Vinci® robotic surgery. Using the da Vinci robotic system, Dr. DeArmond is able to perform lung tissue resections with minimal incisions, greatly reducing the patient's recovery and in-patient days. "If this tool can help us to move that frontier forward, then it's an advantage to patients," says Dr. DeArmond. This surgery is not for all lung cancer patients, but for those whose disease has been caught soon enough, long-term survival rates are a very encouraging 80%. More about Dr. DeArmond | Learn more about the da Vinci® system | Physician Referrals: 210-358-4579 (10-16-08)

DaVinci ™ Robotic Surgical System - More than a decade since it was first pioneered, a technique that greatly reduces the trauma of lung surgery still isn't widely used. But that finally may be starting to change, doctors say. The less invasive form of surgery for lung cancer can significantly decrease recovery time when compared to open chest surgery. That not only allows patients to go home sooner but also can play an important role in reducing pain and preventing complications.

"The earliest I've seen someone going back to work after the procedure is one week," Dr Daniel DeArmond, an assistant professor in cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Texas Health Science Center, said in regard to a patient of his who underwent the minimally invasive surgery.

Da Vinci ™ robotic surgery is available at Christus Santa Rosa Northwest. For physician referrals and patient appointments, please call 210-358-4579 or 210-358-4026. For after hours, weekends, or holiday referrals, please call 210-567-0001.

V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA, Cardiothoracic Surgery, uses laser surgery to relieve otherwise untreatable chest pain: Many patients with chronic, life-limiting chest pain will be able to benefit from a procedure called sole therapy transmyocardial laser revascularization (TMR). In San Antonio, the procedure is available only at University Hospital. Dr. Reddy is director of thoracic aortic surgery for the UT Health Science Center San Antonio Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery. Read more | More about Dr. Reddy
View animation video demonstrating the TMR procedure (video will open in a new browser window) | Animation video graciously provided by Cardiogenesis (9-30-08)

Two Texas men breathing easier with simultaneous dual lung transplant at University Hospital: In March 2008, Dr. Scott Johnson, head of Thoracic Surgery, and Dr. Luis Angel, assistant professor of pulmonary diseases, performed the life-changing surgery for Kevin King and Kenny Deison. The dual operation marked the 300th lung transplant of the Lung Transplantation Program. Read San Antonio Express-News story | HSC News Story | More about the Lung Transplant Program | More about Dr. Johnson | More about Dr. Angel (6-18-08)

New lung cancer procedure is less invasive: A new surgical procedure for early-stage lung cancer is helping patients recover more quickly and without as much pain as the traditional operation. Daniel DeArmond, MD, Cardiothoracic Surgery, is one of only a very small number of thoracic surgeons in San Antonio who is performing the new video-assisted thoracic surgery procedure (VATS). SA Express-News article | More about Dr. DeArmond | More about VATS procedures (3-14-08)

Congenital heart program collaboration is saving the tiniest of lives.
Colman Collins turned 2 on March 30 - he is an active, energetic child today, thankfully, in part due to the care of John H. Calhoon, M.D., Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery, and James H. Rogers, MD, medical director of the Children's Heart Network. Learn more about the Congenital Heart Surgery collaborative service

Double-lung recipient, wife hope their story will help other families
Lloyd and Ruth Wilkins of Redwood City, Calif., wrote firsthand accounts of their quest to get Lloyd a lung transplant, a hunt that ended when they learned about The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio / University Hospital lung transplant program. Lloyd, a high-risk case because of his lung disease, underwent a double-lung transplant June 6, 2005, at University Hospital, one of the Health Science Center's primary teaching hospitals. He is doing very well. John Calhoon, M.D., professor of surgery and Calhoon President's Council Chair for Excellence in Surgery at the Health Science Center, led the team that performed the transplant. Because of highly innovative procedures to preserve donor lungs and to stabilize patients awaiting transplant, the UTHSCSA/UHS lung transplant program has among the shortest waiting times among U.S. medical centers for patients needing single or double lungs. Read more about this innovative surgery and the Wilkins' story.

Life-giving rare heart transplant
"Her heart was located to the right side and backward with a number of strange connections of the veins and arteries," said John Calhoon, M.D., professor and chief of cardiothoracic surgery at the Health Science Center. Our team gave her a new heart and did all of the plumbing necessary to put her heart where it belongs in her left chest. It is a first for us in San Antonio, to my knowledge, and is a very rare kind of transplant." Click here to read more about this groundbreaking procedure.

Thoracic Endograft: a new, less invasive repair technique
San Antonio firefighter Rob Gonzales suffered a lacerated spleen, severe concussion, broken leg and other injuries including a small tear in the lining of his thoracic aorta in an SUV vs. motorcycle accident. During 33 days at Wilford Hall Medical Center, Gonzales was not well enough for surgeons to open his chest to fix the aorta. After stabilizing his other injuries, a plan developed for correcting the problem in a minimally invasive way, making use of the expertise of a newly recruited vascular surgery faculty member, Maureen Sheehan, M.D., who brought with her a repair technique called a thoracic endograft. Click here to read more about Dr. Sheehan's innovative thoracic endograft surgical technique.

HSC-Christus Santa Rosa team gives Laredo teen a new heart
John H. Calhoon, M.D., the Calhoon President's Council Chair for Excellence in Surgery at the Health Science Center, has performed more than 2,500 lifesaving surgeries to repair congenital heart defects and other abnormalities in South Texas children. In December 2005, 16-year-old Andy Linares of Laredo, underwent a heart transplant led by Dr. Calhoon at CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Medical Center Hospital. The surgical team also included Charles Moore, M.D., director of heart transplantation at CHRISTUS Santa Rosa and associate clinical professor of surgery at the Health Science Center. The team, supported by many other health professionals, exemplifies the excellent collaboration between the Health Science Center and CHRISTUS Santa Rosa. Read more about this lifesaving transplant
Learn more about the Congenital Heart Surgery collaborative service

Awards and recognition

2008 Presidential Clinical Excellence Award:Wayne Schwesinger, MD, Professor of Surgery (Division of General & Laparoendoscopic Surgery), awarded the 2008 Clinical Excellence Award on January 31, 2008. This award recognizes Dr. Schwesinger's superlative clinical service here at the Health Science Center and in the San Antonio community. View video about Dr. Schwesinger. (1-15-08)

Physician and educator shares his love of the art and science of surgery: Bob Esterl, MD, Surgery Medical School Education Director and Professor of Surgery (Transplant), is featured in the first edition of the School of Medicine's Future magazine. Since 1994, Dr. Esterl has been sharing his experience, knowledge and skills as a transplant surgeon, and has won numerous teaching awards, many of them awards from the students themselves. Read article (4-30-08)

Lung transplant program Medicare-certified as of March 1, 2007 and our survival statistics exceed national averages. We have transplanted some of the longest surviving lung transplant patients in the nation in addition to some of the eldest. Read more about our lung transplant program. (3-1-07)

2007 Presidential Clinical Excellence Award: Congratulations to Dr. Boulos Toursarkissian for his selection as one of the recipients of the 2007 Presidential Clinical Excellence Award. Dr. Toursarkissian was selected for this honor by a committee of Health Science Center employees and his peers. President Cigarroa presented the award at the annual Presidential Awards Ceremony on January 25, 2007.

America's Top Doctors - Each year, Castle Connolly Medical Ltd.'s research team surveys thousands of physicians in order to identify the very best U.S. physicians.

Texas Super Doctors - Every year, Texas Monthly publishes their list of Texas' Super Doctors - the top medical practitioners in 29 medical practice areas.
 

Special accomplishments in cardiothoracic surgery

• Daniel DeArmond, MD, Cardiothoracic Surgery, is one of only a very small number of thoracic surgeons in San Antonio who is performing the new video-assisted thoracic surgery procedure (VATS).

• Largest experience with endovascular treatment of thoracic aortic disease in San Antonio. Per Gore (the only currently approved FDA device), our group, in particular V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA, Associate Professor of Surgery and Director of Thoracic Aortic Surgery, has done the most implants in San Antonio.

• Highest volume in San Antonio of beating heart surgery as well as 'clampless' beating heart surgery using proximal heartstring anastomotic device.

• Minimally invasive valve surgery by Edward Y. Sako, MD, PhD, Professor of Surgery, and Chief of Surgery and Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery for South Texas Veterans Healthcare System.

• Closed chest surgery for ablation by V. Seenu Reddy, MD, MBA, with Manoj A. Panday, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, specialist in Cardiac Electrophysiology.

Inside Job – Endovascular Experts: With new technology and the addition of top-notch faculty, the program has expanded to include the less-invasive technique for the thoracic aorta. The program takes a multidisciplinary approach to health care.
Read more in this series of three articles in the Summer 2007 issue of the HSC Mission Magazine:
Inside Job | Endovascular Experts | All About the Aorta

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