Open-heart surgery had been one of the largest life saving surgeries performed. The first successful open heart surgery was performed in 1952 by Dr. F John Lewis. He used ice to cool down the heart and slow circulation. The basis of heart surgery involves exposing the heart (open). The sternum must be sawed through to expose the heart. The heart cannot be left pumping during surgery. At first ice was used but now a heart lung machine is used. It involves hooking a tube up to the aorta. Blood goes through this tube to a machine, which serves the heart lung process like in the normal body.
The heart is cut into with a scalpel and then the specific surgery is performed. At the end, incisions are stitched up, the heart goes back to normal blood flow and the sternum is put back together (by bonding agent or staples) Heart surgery in general has the purpose of fixing heart problems, which ultimately saves a person and lengthens their life. There are several types of surgeries that fix certain types of disorders. Here are some of the common open-heart surgeries: 1. Coronary bypass surgery- the disorder for this surgery is blocked coronary arteries. Coronary arteries return blood to the heart.
In this case, they are obstructed by something. It is normally plaque of fatty deposits or blood clots. The result in this is lowered blood flow to the heart which causes pain and circulation disorders. The surgery involves taking a vein from some other part of your body (like your leg) and attaching it to the aorta to reroute blood flow past the blocked area. Coronary bypass surgeries can be classified as double, triple and even quadruple. The numbers classify how many coronary arteries had to be bypassed by this process during surgery. A newer method to solve this disorder is called coronary angioplasty.
It involves routing a small tube from a point in the body and get it to the blocked area. When its there, a small balloon is inflated which expands that artery a little. This is an alternative to open heart surgery. 2. Heart transplant- Sometimes a heart suffers so much damage from heart attacks, diseases, etc”¦ that it will become useless. In this case, if it is not replaced, the person will die. In heart transplant surgery, the heart is removed and replaced with another human heart. It has to be connected to all the arteries and veins just like the heart before. There are the most problems with this surgery.
One major problem is body rejection. Your body might reject the new heart and try to destroy it and not allow it to work. In that case, it means death. Drugs are made though to allow acceptance of the new heart. Another problem is the waiting list. A lot of people are on a waiting list for human hearts. The problem is, if you don’t get the heart on time, it might be too late. Artificial hearts and pig hearts are being experimented with. They have proven to be quite successful. 3. Heart valve surgery- this surgery is one of the important ones. In your heart, you have 4 valves that direct blood flow.
Sometimes there can be a disorder in the valve like it’s too loose, too tight or damaged. Surgery has to be performed or blood flow will be seriously impacted from bad valves, which can lead to fatal circulatory problems. There is a process for the following valve disorders. If the valve is: a. Tight- if the valve is too tight, it will restrict blood flow. In the surgery, it must be loosened to allow better blood flow b. Loose- if the valve is loose, blood will flow in awkward directions and over flow. In the surgery, it must be tightened by pulling it together. A plastic support can also be installed.
c. Damage- if the valve is badly damaged, the heart wont function right and you will die. A badly damaged valve will have to be replaced with an artificial one if surgery isn’t feasible. There is artificial valves such as “the ball in the cage” which allows blood flow to go one way 4. Pacemaker- in the heart, there is a structure called the sinoatrial node. It is responsible for generating impulses that travel throughout the heart and makes the heart beat. If the S. A. node is not functioning right, you need a pacemaker. A pacemaker is a small mechanical unit that is installed on the heart.
It generates electric impulses and makes the heart beat. It has a long life battery but must be changed after 5 years. Something like open-heart surgery would seem unfeasible. After years of development though, open heart surgery procedures have saved millions of lives. Heart disorders are common and now they can finally be neutralized or made better. It’s a difficult undertaking but it’s been successful. Open-heart surgery will continue to prevail to become more efficient and overall perfected. In the future, heart disorders might be as easy to heal as the common cold.