INTRACARDIAC SURGERY—A NEW METHOD

TLDR

No method has previously allowed careful, deliberate intracardiac operations without haste, enabling examination of heart chambers under direct vision. The study aims to describe a new intracardiac surgical procedure designed to relieve mitral stenosis. The authors repeatedly examined normal hearts of etherized dogs for up to twenty minutes, developing a practical technique for mitral stenosis relief. The procedure permits intracardiac surgery while maintaining normal or near‑normal blood flow, preserving systemic and cardiac perfusion, and does not require rapid execution. The.

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe briefly a new surgical procedure for intracardiac operations. Heretofore, no method has been described by which it is possible to go into the cavities of the heart without haste, to examine its chambers carefully, and to operate with deliberation on the interior of the heart under guidance of the eye. We have been able to do this while the normal flow, or nearly normal flow of blood was taking place through the chambers of the heart. The blood supply to the body and to the heart itself was maintained throughout the operation. Great speed of execution, therefore, was not imperative. We have repeatedly looked into the cavities of normal hearts of etherized dogs for as long as twenty minutes with impunity. The primary object of our experimental work was to develop a practical surgical procedure for the relief of mitral stenosis. The