At Memorial Health Heart and Lung Surgical Care, we provide patients with advanced surgical options to treat heart and lung conditions, including chest wall cancer and heart failure.
We understand surgery can be overwhelming, which is why our team is here to support you with pre and postoperative care. We aim to provide outstanding service in a patient-centered atmosphere so you feel comfortable about your treatment plan and procedure.
Cardiac vs. thoracic surgery
Cardiac surgery involves the heart, including its arteries, valves and aorta. We treat heart diseases, including coronary artery disease, mitral valve disease and aortic valve disease.
Our cardiothoracic surgeons practice at Memorial Health University Medical Center, which pioneered open-heart surgery in southeast Georgia. We continue to offer some of the most advanced surgical technology in the region, including traditional open-heart surgery options and minimally invasive procedures when possible.
Thoracic surgery involves the organs and tissues of the chest, including the esophagus, the trachea and the chest wall. We treat diseases of the lungs and esophagus, including lung cancer, esophageal cancer and lung nodules. The cardiothoracic team has years of experience diagnosing and treating simple and complex lung diseases. We are dedicated to providing high-quality care using state-of-the-art technology and minimally invasive techniques.
We believe in multidisciplinary care and collaborate with colleagues in other specialties to provide the best results possible. Our goal is to educate you and your family about the disease process and your treatment options.
Advanced heart surgery
When advanced treatment is needed, heart surgery can improve quality of life and reduce symptoms related to heart disease, heart failure and other heart disorders. There are many different types of heart surgery that may be used to:
- Bypass blocked or narrowed arteries to the heart
- Implant devices to regulate heart rhythms
- Surgically treat atrial fibrillation
- Repair aneurysms, or bulges in the aorta, which can be deadly if they rupture
- Repair or replace the valves that control blood flow through the heart's chambers
Our cardiac surgery services
If you have a common heart condition like aortic stenosis or mitral regurgitation, heart valve surgery can repair or replace damaged valves to restore normal heart function. If you have blocked or damaged coronary arteries, a coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) could be the most effective option to restore blood flow to the heart. This procedure uses blood vessels from other parts of the body to make a new route for blood to flow around blocked coronary (heart) arteries. Our specialists in cardiac care administer advanced treatments for even the most complex procedures, including:
- Aortic surgery
- Aortic valve repair/replacement
- Aortic root repair/replacement
- Aortic aneurysms
- Thoracic aorta
- Artificial heart valves
- Minimally invasive valve surgery
- Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
- Tricuspid valve repair/replacement
- Transcatheter mitral valve repair
- Mitral valve repair/replacement
- Convergent ablation
- MAZE procedure
- Surgical treatment for arrhythmia, such as Afib
- Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)
Our thoracic surgery services
Our thoracic surgery team provides comprehensive diagnosis and surgical care to patients with diseases of the lungs, chest wall and mediastinum. When advanced treatment is needed, our surgeons are equipped to perform thoracic surgery to treat the underlying cause of the condition.
Diseases treated by our thoracic surgeons include:
- Benign pulmonary nodules
- Chest wall cancer
- Emphysema
- Inflammatory disease of the mediastinum
- Interstitial lung disease
- Lung cancer
- Lymphoma
- Mediastinal masses
- Mesothelioma
- Myasthenia gravis
- Pleural effusion
- Pleural infection
- Thymoma
VATS
Memorial Health Heart and Lung Surgical Care is proud to offer video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery or VATS. VATS is a surgical procedure where a small video camera is used to direct a surgeon while performing surgery on a patient. During a VATS surgical procedure, tiny incisions are made in the patient’s chest. A surgeon will then insert a small camera and other tools to perform the procedure. This surgical technique is minimally invasive and, therefore, a preferred procedure in this field.
Lung surgeries and procedures we perform:
- Lung surgery
- Lung biopsy
- Esophageal Surgery
- Pneumonectomy
- Lobectomy (robotic and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery)
- Robotic surgery
- Mediastinal surgery
- Thymectomy
- Pleurodesis
- Lung reduction surgery
To make an appointment with our cardiothoracic surgeons today, please call (912) 273-1150.
