The team of the of the Cardiovascular Surgery Department is actively involved in scientific and pedagogical work. 4th-year-students of the Faculty of Medicine get acquainted with the basics of cardiovascular surgery in the modules “Cardiovascular and Endocrine Diseases”, “Chest Diseases, Allergology and Clinical Immunology and Haematology and Oncology”. The clinic has 15 residents according to the study programmes: “Heart Surgery”, “Chest Thoracic” and “Vascular Surgery”. Also, more and more international doctors (both from Western Europe and former Soviet republics) are improving their medical knowledge in our Department.
Scientific research work fields: methods of surgical treatment of ischemic heart disease using auto-arterial shunts, cardiac valve restoration reconstructive and prosthetic surgeries using biological auto-, homo- and hetero-grafts and mechanical heart valve prostheses, aorta, its branches and large chest vascular surgical treatment methods, improvement of myocardial protection methods. The issues of delayed heart failure surgical treatment and heart transplantation are addressed, minimal volume myocardial revascularisation surgeries without CPB (artificial circulatory system) are improved. The clinic has developed an original method of tachycardias intra-operative diagnostics and operative treatment without artificial blood circulation, offered more than 30 structures of various electrodes and electro-stimulators, about 20 of which are produced in series. A computer-aided mapping system, a method of stimulation of the chest muscles, was developed to prepare patients for cardiomyo-plastics. Intensive development of complex heart surgeries and procedures for patients with small ejection fractions. The practical aspects of the work are also analysed, the application of diagnostic and treatment methods, their improvement, evaluation and the formulation of uniform principles. Assessment of surgical risk.
Urgent surgery for chest injuries. Some of these surgeries are performed using imaging thoracoscopy techniques. Reconstructive surgery of the chest wall due to congenital or acquired (due to diseases and injuries) deformation, tumours, infectious-inflammatory diseases. Urgent and selective surgeries due to pathology in the pleural cavity (spontaneous pneumothorax, pleurisy of various origins, pleural empyema, tumours) using image thoracoscopy. Pulmonary resection surgery for malignant tumours and other diseases. Reconstructive operations of the lower part of the larynx and trachea due to stenoses of various origins.
Chest, abdominal aortic aneurysms open surgery and endostenting, complex aortic arch vascular reconstructive surgery, complex cardiovascular surgery, hip and leg artery reconstructive surgery comparison with endovascular interventions (percutaneous transcranial angioplasty, subintimal angioplasty, stenting), vascular surgery complications with deep surgical treatment of leg infections. Complex treatment of angiopathy in diabetic patients, complex reconstruction of distal arteries. Formation of fistula in patients with renal failure and their reconstructive surgery.
Participation in the project “Fundamentals of the National Complex Programme of Medical Sciences: Development, Renewal and Implementation of Study Programmes at the I and II Study Stages; Development of Lecturers’ Competences and Promotion of Mobility”, implementation of additional practices of students of the integrated medical study programme.
The clinic has a conference hall with up to 150 seats and 4 auditoriums equipped with modern video projection equipment. Images from the operating rooms can be displayed in the conference room, thus opportunities are created to improve the study process for students and residents studying at the Department.
Scientists of the Department are actively participating in international scientific events; they cooperate with the Lund University Hospital (Sweden), Umea University (Sweden), where in 1997 the training of cardiac anaesthesiologists, cardiac surgeons was begun, the Masonic Medical Center (Chicago, USA), the heart centres in Aalborg, Denmark, in Wuppertal, Germany and other cardiac surgery departments.
The team of the Department of Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery consists of 5 professors, 1 associate professor and 10 lecturers. Most of the doctors are young, advanced specialists. Many of them have been trained in modern clinics in Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and the USA.