Heart valve surgery
If your cardiologist recommends heart valve surgery, depend on the skilled surgeons at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula’s Tyler Heart Institute for high-quality care. Feel confident your treatment and overall experience will be as smooth and safe as possible because our surgeons have experience performing thousands of procedures like yours, including many complex cases.
Conditions treated
When conservative treatments like lifestyle changes and medications aren’t effective enough, surgery may be the best choice to treat heart failure or structural heart disease.
Valve repair and replacement
Depending on your condition and other factors, you may have:
- Valve repair surgery – Your surgeon will adjust your valve to help it work better
- Valve replacement surgery – Your surgeon replaces the damaged valve with a new one that may be mechanical (made of metal and carbon) or biological (made from animal tissue)
What to expect
Your surgery will take place in an operating room (OR). Your care team will:
- Give you anesthesia, medication to prevent pain that causes you to sleep and not remember the procedure
- Connect you to a heart-lung bypass machine, which takes over the work of your heart during surgery by putting oxygen into the blood and moving the blood through your body
Your surgeon will make one long incision in your chest. This is known as traditional, or open-heart, surgery. Then, your surgeon will repair or replace the diseased valve.
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR)
If you have stenosis (narrowing) of your aortic valve and open-heart surgery isn’t right for you, your doctor may recommend an advanced, minimally invasive procedure called transcatheter aortic valve replacement, or TAVR. Feel confident you’ll enjoy the benefits of this less invasive treatment when you rely on our experienced specialists.
Cardiac rehabilitation
After you have surgery and leave Community Hospital, cardiac rehabilitation can help you rebuild strength and enjoy a heart-healthy lifestyle.
