Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery
Daniel O'Hair, MD, Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon
Medical Director, Robotic Surgery Center of Wisconsin
Aurora St. Luke's was the first hospital in Southeastern Wisconsin to apply the precision of robotic-assisted technology in heart bypass surgery and mitral valve surgery. Aurora St. Luke's was also the first in the world to use the da Vinci® Surgical System to perform a double heart valve repair. Physicians from across the United States have visited Aurora St. Luke's Medical Center to observe and learn from our robotic-assisted surgery program.
Experience Counts
Since initiating our robotic-assisted surgery program in 2002, Aurora Health Care physicians have collectively performed more than 4,700 robotic-assisted procedures using the daVinci Surgical System.
The robotic-assisted heart surgery team is led by Daniel O’Hair, MD, a board-certified cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon with years of experience in robotic-assisted heart surgery procedures.
Robotic-assisted cardiac procedures available at aurora:
- Mitral valve repair
- Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG)
- Atrial septal defect repair
- Pacemaker leads placement/implant
Robotic-Assisted vs. Traditional Heart Surgery
| Open Procedure | Robotic-assisted procedure | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of incisions: | 1 | 4 or 5 |
| Size of incisions: | 8–10” | ½” |
Additional benefits of robotic-assisted heart surgery:
- Significantly less pain
- Less trauma to surrounding tissue
- Less blood loss
- Shorter hospital stays
- Faster recoveries
- More rapid return to everyday activities
- Less scarring
- Less risk of infection
To learn more about robotic-assisted surgery, see our frequently asked questions.
If you are considering a robotic-assisted surgery, consider asking your physician the following questions:
- What experience do you have with robotic-assisted surgery?
- What types of robotic-assisted surgery procedures have you done?
- How many robotic-assisted surgery procedures have you done?
- What type of outcomes have your patients experienced?
To find out if robotic-assisted surgery may be right for you, visit Aurora’s Second Opinion Program or call 888-973-2663.
