“In modern cardiac surgery and interventional cardiology, their treatment is individualized. Thus, bypass is the “golden” option for stem disease, although in exceptional situations angioplasty is also indicated. Regarding aortic valve stenosis, today both surgical treatment and transcatheter, also called TAVI, are indicated, depending on the age of the patients and their possible other health problems.
When a patient suffers from both, the situation becomes complicated. The thorough clinical laboratory and radiological investigation leads to the correct treatment”, points out the Mr. Christoforos Kotoulas Cardiac surgeon, Director of Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery Clinic Metropolitan General and continues: “In our clinic we dealt with the unique case of a woman of about 70 years, who presented a porcelain-like ascending aorta, a complete contraindication for surgical treatment of very severe stenosis of the aortic valve and severe stenosis of the trunk of the left coronary artery. It should be noted the intense calcification throughout the aortic tree, but also in the coronary vessels, which created serious concerns about its correct treatment.
After the prescribed thorough pre-operative check-up, at the Metropolitan General’s hybrid hemodynamic laboratory, our patient underwent a hybrid treatment of coronary artery disease with beating heart bypass and arterial grafts and TAVI valve placement from the single point of the aorta without liming. The patient had a smooth postoperative course, without transfusion, and was discharged from the hospital in excellent condition on the 6th postoperative day. The patient did not experience any pain, the aesthetic result was perfect and she quickly returned to her daily life”, as stated by Mr. Kotoulas.

The operation

The guidance and implementation of the double pioneering hybrid cardiac surgery, one of the first such cases in Greece, without the patient’s heart ever stopping due to these two serious problems, was carried out by cardiac surgeon Mr. Christoforos Kotoulas and his team, of the minimally invasive cardiac surgery clinic, with the contribution of interventional cardiologist Mr. Ayandas Antoniadis.
The Metropolitan Genera,l hospital, having state-of-the-art technology and specialized cardiac specialists, is a pioneer in operations and in the field of hybrid cardiac surgical techniques. This specific incident is the second of its kind in Greece.