CTSNet Summarized—Top JANS Articles of 2025

Throughout the past year, CTSNet JANS editors have excelled in curating important and engaging cardiothoracic surgery journal articles and news. They have highlighted critical topics, including the first fully robotic heart transplant in the United States performed without opening the patient's chest and bioprosthetic vs mechanical aortic valve replacement in patients 40 to 75 years old. Keep delving into the top JANS articles from 2025 and look forward to more valuable content in 2026.  

1.) First Fully Robotic Heart Transplant in the US Performed Without Opening Patient's Chest 

The most popular JANS article this year details how surgeons at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston, Texas, successfully performed the first robotic heart transplant in the United States without opening the chest, using small abdominal incisions. 

2.) Bioprosthetic vs Mechanical Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients 40-75 Years 

Another popular JANS article this year evaluated long-term outcomes of bioprosthetic and mechanical aortic valve replacement (AVR) using data from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (STS-ACSD).  

3.) Transcatheter Versus Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients Younger Than 65 Years in the US 

Next, is a retrospective analysis examining the trends and outcomes of aortic valve replacement in patients under the age of 65 with aortic stenosis from 2013 to 2021, focusing on transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) versus surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR).  

4.) Ticagrelor and Aspirin or Aspirin Alone After Coronary Surgery for Acute Coronary Syndrome 

This highly rated JANS article examines the effects of adding ticagrelor to aspirin in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) for acute coronary syndrome. 

5.) Mortality and Stroke After Routine Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion in Patients Undergoing Isolated Mitral Repair Without Atrial Fibrillation in the United States 

Finally, this article compared the long-term outcomes of patients who underwent left atrial appendage closure during mitral repair with those who did not, specifically in patients without atrial fibrillation (AF).  

Learn more about the top JANS articles of 2024 here. 

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