New ultrasonic device for internal thoracic artery harvesting

The internal thoracic artery skeletonization method typically involves careful dissection with electrocautery. However, skeletonization using harmonic technology is safer than the conventional method. Ultrasonic shears may be faster than traditional methods, and may optimize the quality of skeletonized grafts during harvesting, preserving their functional and structural conduit integrity, and facilitating harvesting of the bilateral internal thoracic artery. This tutorial shows in detail the skeletonization harvest technique, using Ethicon's harmonic shears (Ethicon Endo-Surgery©, CVD, Cincinnati, OH, USA) Our results, using this technique, showed no harvesting damage and excellent graft quality as evaluated intraoperatively.