There is growing interest in minimally invasive cardiac surgery where the operation is performed through a small incision in the chest instead of conventional surgery which involves opening up the ribcage.  This type of keyhole surgery aims to reduce pain and speed-up recovery for patients.

In October 2018, 15 recently-appointed consultant cardiac surgeons and senior trainees in cardiac surgery from across the UK had the opportunity to learn about minimally invasive surgery on the mitral valve, aortic valve, aortic root and ascending aorta.

The course was held at the West Midlands Surgical Training Centre (WMSTC) at University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, and was led by Aung Oo, Professor of Cardiovascular Surgery and Clinical Lead for Aortovascular Surgery at Barts Heart Centre, St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London.

Joining the expert faculty were Mr Paul Modi of Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Professor Martin Misfeld of Heart Centre Leipzig and Professor Tristan Yan from the University of Sydney.

The masterclass provided a unique opportunity to learn how to carry out these types of operations and the surgeons gained valuable hands-on experience of minimal access surgery, supervised by the talented, world-renowned faculty.