At the Mercy Heart Hospital, patients are able to take advantage of the latest, leading-edge therapies—including new drugs, medical devices and surgical procedures. From July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007, 521 adult and 117 pediatric heart surgery cases were completed at Mercy.

Coronary Artery Bypass Graft
Coronary bypass surgery is an operation in which other blood vessels are used to go around, or bypass, clogged coronary arteries. Blood can then flow freely to the heart through the new arteries. More info

Valve Replacement/Repair
During heart valve surgery, one or more heart valves can be repaired or replaced. Repair means that the valve is fixed to work better.  Replacement means that the diseased valve is removed and a new valve is put in its place. The decision whether to repair or replace a valve often can't be made until after surgery has begun. More info

Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery
This surgery is done to reroute, or "bypass," blood around coronary arteries that are clogged by fatty buildups of plaque to improve the supply of blood and oxygen to the heart. More info

Off-Pump Beating Heart Surgery
In this surgery, repair of coronary arteries is made while the heart continues to beat. During traditional bypass surgery, most patients are placed on a heart/lung machine, which reroutes the blood outside the body, oxygenates it and returns it to the body, so the heart is not moving during surgery. More info

Ross Procedure
The Ross Procedure is a specialized valve surgery that involves both the Aortic and Pulmonary valves of the heart. It is a two-step process. First, the patient's diseased aortic valve is replaced with the patient's pulmonary valve. Then the pulmonary valve is replaced with a cadaver pulmonary valve.