Discussion: the Current Status and Future of Cardiac Surgery

A panel of leading cardiac surgeons met at the 2016 SCTS Annual Meeting in Birmingham, United Kingdom, to discuss the current state of cardiac surgery, and what is on the horizon for the subspecialty. Michael Mack of the Baylor Heart Hospital, Plano, Texas, was joined by Volkmar Falk of the Deutsches Herzzentrum Berlin, Berlin, Germany, and Joseph Bavaria of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The panelists discuss TAVR, TEVAR, and the the increasing use of minimally invasive approaches. They also share their thoughts on how cardiac surgery practice is likely to evolve.