At Mayo Clinic's Aortic Center, our surgeons perform aortic surgery from aortic root to aortic arch, descending aorta surgery, and thoracoabdominal aortic surgery with excellent results. We specialize in patients with complex aortic pathologies, including patients who've had previous surgeries. We also offer minimally invasive surgery even in complex conditions, including aortic valve repair; valve-sparing aortic root replacement surgery; aortic root, ascending aorta and arch replacement.

At our multidisciplinary Aortic Center, cardiologists, anesthesiologists, radiologists, and cardiac and vascular surgeons work together to find the best surgical solutions for your patients.

"In addition to providing excellent care, we are creating future treatments for patients with aortic diseases. At Mayo Clinic, we have one of the largest and most advanced research programs in the world, and our teams conduct clinical trials of new devices, procedures and treatments." — Malakh L. Shrestha, M.B.B.S., Ph.D.

When patients face complex heart conditions requiring surgical intervention, Mayo Clinic's multidisciplinary team of cardiac surgeons and cardiologists are here to provide exceptional care and achieve outstanding outcomes. Our surgical experts approach each patient, even when options seem limited or impossible.

Patients with a history of multiple prior surgeries, complex and extensive heart disease, or other complicating factors may have limited tolerance to surgery. At Mayo Clinic, we specialize in managing these high-risk situations for patients of all ages, offering hope and delivering successful results. We are committed to helping those who have yet to find solutions, providing them with the care they need for healing and recovery.

The complexity of a patient's condition may arise from factors such as prior heart surgeries, mediastinal radiation exposure, the need for extensive surgical procedures, underlying health conditions, reduced physiological reserve or compromised heart function.

Your patients have options. Mayo Clinic’s cardiac surgeons are ready to help.

Let our specialists assess your patients' unique clinical needs and provide advanced surgical treatments.

"Reentry of the chest is complex and requires patience to protect the cardiac structures and attention to detail by the whole surgical team. Our expertise performing these increasingly difficult procedures over the course of years allows us to do more to help patients." — Juan A. Crestanello, M.D.

Mayo Clinic specializes in treating complex or rare conditions. Many patients with tricuspid valve disease have multiple comorbidities, which can make surgery more complex. We manage those patients through surgery and recovery with excellent outcomes — that's what we do well.

At Mayo Clinic, our extensive experience in treating tricuspid valve disease covers a wide range of conditions, including functional tricuspid regurgitation, tricuspid regurgitation associated with congenital heart disease, carcinoid heart disease, Ebstein anomaly, pacemaker-induced tricuspid regurgitation and tricuspid regurgitation associated with atrial fibrillation.

Patients benefit from our dedicated and skilled multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, echocardiographers, surgeons, anesthesiologists and critical care physicians.

"The most important concept for healthcare professionals to understand is that tricuspid valve disease is not something that you can let be. For years doctors felt comfortable monitoring patients with tricuspid valve disease, letting them progressively deteriorate and only referring them at the end stages when there was evidence of organ dysfunction such as kidney and liver disease. We recommend early intervention for patients with tricuspid valve disease. Early referral to a center with expertise in tricuspid valve surgery is key for better outcomes." — Juan A. Crestanello, M.D.

Mayo Clinic is one of the largest and most experienced congenital heart disease centers in the United States. This program offers a comprehensive approach to children and adults with complex congenital heart conditions. Mayo Clinic Children's Center, designated a Level 1 children's surgical center by the American College of Surgeons, takes care of patients with heart defects from birth through adulthood. Mayo Clinic's adult congenital heart program, the only Adult Congenital Heart Association-accredited center in Minnesota, has managed patients with complex heart disease for more than 65 years. We offer comprehensive clinical services to diagnose and treat the most difficult congenital and acquired heart conditions in infants, children and adults.

The multidisciplinary experts include faculty members from both pediatric and adult practices in surgery, cardiology, imaging, critical care, electrophysiology and primary care. What sets our center apart is its unique model, where the children's hospital is integrated within an adult hospital, fostering collaboration among experts. This teamwork across all age groups exemplifies our resource-intensive specialty and is a natural part of our culture.

Our doctors use advanced technology and diagnostic techniques, including 3D models, artificial intelligence and virtual reality to support treatments. Our physician-scientists study genetics and innovative surgical and catheter-based techniques for the management of congenital heart disease. Mayo Clinic holds several National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants to study patients with congenital heart disease.

"The strength of our program is due to the daily interactions of multidisciplinary care between specialists from both the pediatric and the adult cardiovascular service lines." — Joseph A. Dearani, M.D.

Our approach to using the left internal mammary artery (LIMA) to bypass the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery is pioneering a new era of hybrid revascularization. This method combines the long-term benefits of the LIMA-to-LAD graft with minimally invasive surgery and stenting of other vessels, reducing invasiveness and recovery time. We are also developing a totally endoscopic coronary revascularization program to combine the benefits of multiarterial revascularization with a minimally invasive approach.

Minimally invasive surgical techniques for coronary revascularization are integral to our comprehensive care approach. Minimally invasive CABG is another example of how we individualize this procedure for each unique patient based on what approach is best.

Advances in perioperative care, surgical techniques and postoperative management have significantly reduced the risks associated with CABG while enhancing its long-term durability. Our ongoing research and commitment to innovation ensure that patients receive the highest standard of care.

A leader in organ transplant outcomes, Mayo Clinic is saving more lives with advances that expand the donor pool, which reduces wait times. New preservation techniques allow us to procure organs across the continental U.S. Organ perfusion systems, such as the “heart in a box,” allows the heart to remain viable for many hours, facilitating for long-distance transport to a transplant recipient. Similarly, the ex vivo lung perfusion system preserves a donated lung in a machine outside the body.

Our multiorgan transplant program includes heart-lung, heart-liver and heart-kidney transplants. Lung-liver and lung-kidney transplants are performed as well. Double-lung transplants are our standard practice for increasing patient longevity. We're also offering transplantation for highly sensitized patients who may not be eligible elsewhere.

We foster continuous improvement for our transplant patients through innovations, including leading multiple clinical trials to evaluate new medications, devices and procedures.

"With newer heart perfusion technology, we have more aggressive clinical pathways than ever before for saving lives. We also have a personalized approach to take the patients through the transplant process. They'll get to know the coordinators, cardiologist, pulmonologist and surgeons well." — Mauricio A. Villavicencio Theoduloz, M.D.

Mayo Clinic's multidisciplinary team of cardiovascular surgeons, cardiologists, geneticists and radiologists collaborates to treat patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Our patient-directed, comprehensive care plans address hypertrophy and related conditions such as arrhythmias or valve disease.

We treat hundreds of patients with HCM each year, with a significant number undergoing septal myectomy. Myectomy surgery leads to significant symptom relief, a lower risk of sudden cardiac death, and the restoration of both quality of life and life expectancy after the procedure.

Many of our physicians and surgeons have been instrumental in pioneering research that has advanced HCM surgery and treatment. Notable innovations are the refinement of the transaortic septal myectomy technique, which has become the gold standard in the field, and the introduction of transapical myectomy.

Led by renowned cardiologists, radiologists, and cardiovascular surgeons, Mayo Clinic's pericardiectomy program annually evaluates more than 700 patients with pericardial diseases, making us a leader in the field. Since 1936, we have performed almost 2,000 operations, averaging over 50 a year in the past 20 years. Our team is known for its meticulous and patient-centered approach, dedicated to refining pericardiectomy techniques through research and clinical trials. These efforts have significantly improved surgery success rates, leading to quicker recoveries and shorter hospital stays.

We pioneered diagnostic criteria for pericarditis and were at the forefront of developing noninvasive technologies such as echocardiography, computerized tomography and MRI. Our expertise in cardiac MRI is invaluable in diagnosing and prognosticating pericardial disease. Additionally, we have established procedures such as pericardiocentesis under ultrasound guidance to remove excess fluid from the pericardial cavity. New treatments, such as IL-1 receptor blockers, have revolutionized therapy and drastically improved quality of life. Our expert team ensures comprehensive and contemporary care, offering patients the most advanced and effective treatments available.

"Our team of multidisciplinary specialists have the knowledge and experience to make the correct diagnosis and provide comprehensive treatment plans, whether medical or surgical. This collaborative approach ensures that patients receive the best possible care." — Kevin L. Greason, M.D.

Mayo Clinic's Cardiovascular Surgery research program provides patients with innovative therapies.

Mayo's research program combines an emphasis on the study of clinical outcomes after heart surgery and a presence at the frontier of medical science and biotechnologies. This combination allows us to be at the forefront of developing novel therapies to combat disease and improve patient care.

Our research efforts are supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. Department of Defense, foundations, industry collaborations and philanthropic contributions. Over the past year, our team published several hundred journal articles and delivered presentations at numerous national conferences. Our researchers receive over $5 million in NIH funding, grant awards from the Thoracic Surgery Foundation and the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, and 20 sponsored research awards.

Mayo Cardiovascular Surgery research covers multiple areas including:

• Development of artificial intelligence tools to improve care in cardiovascular surgery.
• Clinical outcomes research in cardiovascular diseases.
• Study of surgical diseases at a molecular level for translation of cutting-edge science to the bedside.
• Development of novel surgical devices to streamline and invent surgical procedures.
• Research on patient care delivery processes that improve the patient experience.

Mayo physicians are constantly innovating and improving. We're also educating and developing the next generation of academic leaders by working together with Mayo's surgical training programs and Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

"We're more than just doctors seeing patients, performing surgeries and getting superb results. We're key leaders in the medical profession helping to direct the future of medicine." — Paul C. Tang, M.D., Ph.D.

Mayo Clinic's robotic cardiac surgery program started in 2008 and is one of the longest-running programs in the U.S. Mayo Clinic is one of the highest-volume robotic surgery centers, and our team is widely recognized for performing complex procedures with safe and excellent outcomes. Our surgeons have completed more than 1,100 successful robotic mitral valve repair procedures.

Robotic surgery, once limited to a select group of patients, is now being expanded at Mayo Clinic to include a broader range of procedures, allowing more patients to benefit from this approach. Our surgeries include robotic mitral and tricuspid valve repairs or replacement, aortic valve replacement, cardiac tumor removal, atrial septal defect repair, patent foramen ovale closure, atrial fibrillation treatment, and pacemaker placement.

Every robotic procedure involves two dedicated cardiac surgeons. This dual-surgeon approach offers expertise and safety and significantly enhances surgical outcomes.

"Mayo Clinic is devoted to providing holistic care, ensuring every patient receives top-tier attention before the procedure, throughout the hospital stay and after discharge. Entrust your patient's care to Mayo Clinic and experience our unwavering standard of healthcare excellence." — Arman Arghami, M.D., M.P.H.

The transcatheter therapy program at Mayo Clinic offers a unique blend of expertise and innovation. Our team, composed of cardiovascular surgeons, interventional cardiologists and imaging experts, collaborates seamlessly to provide comprehensive care. This synergy allows us to apply both established treatments and the latest technological advancements, ensuring that each patient receives the most effective and personalized care possible.

We leverage advanced imaging technologies and artificial intelligence to enhance our ability to quickly diagnose and provide targeted treatment of valvular heart disease. Our approach includes a range of therapies, from traditional surgical methods to novel transcatheter procedures. Our commitment to collaboration extends beyond our team, as we work closely with referring healthcare professionals to ensure continuity of care and optimal treatment plans tailored to each patient's unique needs.