Mount Auburn Healthcare Connection

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Mount Auburn Hospital’s cardiothoracic surgeons are highly specialized to treat everything from heart conditions to lung cancer. They perform more than 200 cardiac procedures a year with coronary bypass surgery and valve surgery making up the majority of their cases. While cardiac disease impacts nearly every family, take comfort in knowing you have an award-winning cardiothoracic team in your community.

What is coronary bypass and valve surgery?
Coronary artery bypass surgery treats coronary artery disease (CAD) by rerouting blood flow in an artery that is blocked. “It’s like having a roadblock in your heart, and the surgeons make a detour around the blockage using arteries or veins from other parts of your body,” explains Vladimir Birjiniuk, M.D., Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Mount Auburn Hospital.

Creating this new passageway increases blood flow to your heart; reduces symptoms of coronary artery disease; helps improve your quality of life; and prolongs your life.

CAD, along with calcium deposits and fibrous tissue growth, can also cause disease in your heart valves. Improperly functioning valves cause your heart to work harder than necessary, which eventually weakens the heart. If surgery is needed, Dr. Birjiniuk says the cardiothoracic team at Mount Auburn Hospital uses the most advanced techniques to repair or replace the damaged valves.

Greater awareness of heart disease, improved diagnostics and medication treatments are reducing the number of patients who need coronary bypass and valve surgery. In fact, Dr. Birjiniuk says the incidence of CAD has reduced by about 20 percent. Yet, it is still the leading cause of death among Americans and surgery may still be recommended depending on the presence and severity of the damage.

Award winning cardiovascular surgery team
For nearly a decade, Mount Auburn Hospital’s cardiovascular surgery team has been recognized for their excellence. They are one of two hospitals in Massachusetts to receive the HealthGrades^® Cardiac Surgery Excellence Award™ five years in a row (2008-2012) and the HealthGrades 5-Star Award for Coronary Bypass Surgery seven years in a row (2006-2012).

These superior patient outcomes are a direct result of the hospital’s support, the skilled surgical team and the culture of teamwork. “We’re all very focused on reaching our goal for our patients—safe, successful treatments to get them back to their daily life,” he says.

Find a primary care physician that can help you keep your heart strong. Call 617-499-5094.