2012 - Health Care Professionals - Dartmouth-Hitchcock

CARDIOTHORACIC SURGERYLawrence J. Dacey, MDSection ChiefProfessor of Surgery andCommunity & Family MedicineKerry RyanDirector, Department of SurgeryIntroductionThe Section of CardiothoracicSurgery, consisting of the Divisionsof General Thoracic Surgery andCardiac Surgery, continues tooffer a full range of focused andinnovative surgical options to allpatients with surgical diseases ofthe thorax. With this increasedspecialization of the cardiothoracicsurgical faculty, the Section haswitnessed an increasingly complexcaseload with excellent outcomeswhile it continues to lead theInstitution in inpatient, outpatient,and referring physician satisfaction.Our continued involvement with theGeneral Surgical Residency TrainingProgram and the Geisel School ofMedicine allows medical students andsurgical residents to experience supervisedtraining in a busy outpatient clinic,inpatient consult and critical care service,and operating room.The Division of Cardiac SurgeryThe Division of Cardiac Surgery continuesto offer a full range of surgical proceduresfor patients with acquired adult cardiacdiseases. This includes standard cardiacsurgery procedures, i.e. coronary bypass,valve repair and replacement, as well asmore complex procedures such as valvesparing aortic valve surgery, and variousforms of left ventricular remodelingprocedures. In addition, we have recentlybegun Transcatheter Aortic ValveReplacement in collaboration with ourHeart and Vascular Center colleagues. Ourcontinued involvement in the NorthernNew England Cardiovascular Disease StudyGroup and participation in the Society ofThoracic Surgeons Cardiac SurgicalDatabase insures that our outcomes areclosely monitored and transparentlydisplayed against institutional, regional,and national standards. We are proud tocontinue to demonstrate some of thebest outcomes in the nation. Patientscan now access and review our surgicaloutcomes by logging ontowww.dhmc.org/qualityreports/list.cfm?metrics=CT.The Aortic Center at Dartmouth continuesto thrive under the directorship of AnthonyDiScipio, MD. This multidisciplinaryinitiative offers patients with complexdiseases of the thoracic aorta, many of themost sophisticated surgical interventionsperformed today. Patients with lifethreateningaortic diseases can now beevaluated and electively treated by themost advanced imaging and therapeuticmodalities available and by a team ofprofessionals dedicated to understandingand treating these conditions.In collaboration with our electrophysiologydepartment, James Yun, MD is helping tolead a laser-assisted lead extraction programfor aging or worn out pacemaker anddefibrillator leads. This program willaddress a mounting clinical problem asmore of these devices need to be removed.The Division of GeneralThoracic SurgeryThe Division of General Thoracic Surgerycontinues to be an integral part ofDartmouth-Hitchcock’s and Norris CottonCancer Center’s Comprehensive ThoracicOncology Program (CTOP). Thismultidisciplinary initiative offers all patientswith malignant diseases of the chest direct“one-stop” access to a multidisciplinaryteam of experts dedicated to betterunderstanding and treating these devastatingconditions. This program meets weeklyand combines a patient-centered clinicalconference, with a centralized clinic thatplaces clinicians from medical oncology,surgical oncology, pulmonary, diagnosticand interventional radiology, and pathologyin one location. This has offered bothpatients and clinicians the opportunity for“real-time” collaboration and consultation.The General Thoracic Division offers a fullrange of surgical procedures for patientswith benign and malignant diseases ofthe lung, esophagus, mediastinum, andpleural spaces. This includes, whereappropriate, video assisted thoracic surgery(VATS) including VATS lobectomy andesophagectomy. A workgroup headed byCherie Erkmen, MD is formulating a carepathway for esophageal cancer patients.This will provide optimum care in a timelyfashion.Research within the Section ofCardiothoracic SurgeryResearch opportunities for faculty andresidents continue within the Section.Under the direction of Joseph DeSimone,MD, we are enrolling patients into thePartner’s 2 trial for Transcatheter AorticValve Replacements. Dr. DeSimone alsocoordinates a large animal laboratory studylooking at the effects of pulsatile perfusionon organ systems. Finally, outcomes4