Cardiovascular surgery and minimally invasive procedures

Your cardiologist may recommend a procedure to treat your cardiovascular condition. When expertise and skill count most, think of the specialists at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula’s Tyler Heart Institute, part of Montage Health.

You and your care team may decide a procedure is the best choice for you if:

• More conservative treatments, such as medications and diet and lifestyle changes, aren’t effective
• Your symptoms are severe or affect your quality of life
• You’re at risk of complications, such as stroke or heart attack

Services we offer

Get skilled care from leading surgeons, all while staying hear your home in Monterey County.

Cardiac (heart) procedures

A procedure can treat a condition that affects the structures (valves and tissues) of your heart or how well your heart works. We offer:

• Arrhythmia (heart rhythm disorder) procedures
  • Cardiac ablation
  • Left atrial appendage closure
  • Maze procedure for atrial fibrillation
  • Placement of a pacemaker or implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD)
• Closure of a hole in the heart, such as an atrial septal defect or patent foramen ovale (PFO)
• Heart valve repair or replacement
  
  • Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
• Procedures to temporarily place a device, such as an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) or Impella® pump, to help the heart move blood through the body

Vascular procedures

Vascular conditions affect the blood vessels (arteries, capillaries, and veins). Treatments include:

• Aneurysm repair – Treats an aneurysm, a weakened or ballooning blood vessel that’s at risk of causing life-threatening bleeding
  • Ascending aortic aneurysm and dissection repair
  • Endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR)
  • Stent graft repair
  • Thoracic endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (TEVAR)
• Angioplasty with or without stent placement – Restores healthy blood flow by treating blockages caused by atherosclerosis (plaque buildup) in the arteries
• Atherectomy – Treats atherosclerosis by removing plaque buildup from blood vessels
• Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) – Redirects blood flow to the heart by creating a new pathway, bypassing a blocked or narrowed coronary artery

Surgical approaches

Whenever possible, your care team will use endovascular techniques to perform your surgery. Endovascular means your cardiologist uses advanced imaging technology and a minimally invasive approach to treat your condition through your blood vessels. You’ll benefit from smaller incisions, less risk of pain and infection, and a faster recovery.

Sometimes, however, your procedure needs to be done using traditional, or open-heart, techniques. This means your cardiothoracic surgeon makes one long incision in the chest to reach your heart and blood vessels and perform your operation.

Surgical revisions

If you had a previous surgery that wasn’t effective, your cardiologist may recommend a revision (re-do) operation. Trust our team to help you reach a better outcome because we have experience performing revisions for complex conditions.

What to expect

Before, during, and after your procedure, you’ll be the focus of a multidisciplinary team that works closely together to help you reach your best outcome. If your procedure is planned, count on your care team to explain your options, potential risks and benefits, and answer any questions you may have.

Operating rooms (ORs)

Your treatment will take place in a specialized setting with everything your doctors need to deliver excellent care. Depending on the type of procedure, it may take place in our:

• Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory – Dedicated setting for interventional cardiology procedures, which use catheters (long, thin tubes), imaging technology, and minimally invasive techniques to diagnose and treat health conditions
• Electrophysiology (EP) lab – Room with advanced technology staffed by cardiologists with specialized training to diagnose and treat heart rhythm disorders
• Main Operating Room – Surgical unit within Community Hospital for patients receiving overnight (inpatient) care
• Outpatient Surgery Center – Location where patients receive outpatient (same-day) surgery and go home afterward

After surgery

You may:

• Be able to go home the same day as your surgery
• Stay in the hospital for one or more nights so you can receive follow-up care and monitoring in our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or another nursing area of the hospital

Get back to feeling your best after a cardiovascular procedure thanks to a rehabilitation program designed specifically for patients like you.