[Advanced coronary artery surgery for minimally invasiveness]

Since the development of drug-eluting stents, the conditions of coronary artery surgery have changed. The selection criteria for candidates for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) have become more stringent. In this era, surgeons should perform less invasive surgery to save such candidates. Off-pump coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) will become the gold standard surgical procedure for the treatment of ischemic heart disease. This paper describes how to perform less invasive OPCAB with some useful devices and points out the pitfalls of the standard procedure. We have also introduced robotic surgery using the DaVinci system. This procedure decreases the length of dermal incisions. Robotic surgery has other advantages compared with the standard endoscopic surgery. The arm of the robot absorbs the vibrations of human hands and the command function can decrease movement significantly. This arm has five joints, allowing the operator to manipulate the equipment easily inside the body. We have also performed awake CABG with high epidural anesthesia for minimally invasive surgery. This procedure is performed especially in patients with severe cerebrovascular disease and lung injury. In our institution, patients can be discharged only 5 days after this surgical procedure. Less invasive surgery will be the standard procedure in future.