In this edition of the CTSNet podcast, The Lifeline, host and nurse educator Jill Ley, Clinical Professor at the University of California San Francisco School of Nursing, Founder of the Essentials of Cardiac Surgical Resuscitation, and former Cardiac Surgery Clinical Nurse Specialist at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, CA, USA, speaks with CTSNet…
The authors present their technique for axillary Impella 5.5 insertion. The preferred incision was made through the deltopectoral groove, where the axillary artery is more superficial and easier to access. The pectoral muscles were traversed by spreading their fibers rather than dividing them, and two self-retaining retractors were used to optimize exposure. To expose the…
The authors present a 75-year-old woman with dyspnea on exertion. She was diagnosed with an aortic valve stenosis and moderate-to-severe mitral valve regurgitation due to a localized A2 prolapse. This case demonstrates a step-by-step transaxillary, direct-vision aortic valve replacement, mitral valve repair, concomitant ablation, and left atrial appendage clip. This video submission is from the 2026 CTSNet Instructional Video Competition.…
Mediastinal lipomas are benign, slow-growing masses that can present as large masses due to their insidious onset (1). Symptoms associated with these lipomas are generally due to mass effect, such as dysphagia, shortness of breath, palpitations, and/or chest pain. In most cases, large mediastinal masses are removed via thoracotomy or sternotomy (1, 2). In this…
This week on The Beat, CTSNet Editor-in-Chief Joel Dunning spoke with Dr. Aamir Amin, a cardiothoracic surgery resident at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, UK, about humanoid robots and artificial intelligence (AI) in surgery. Dr. Amin shares his insights from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA) executive program on AI in healthcare,…
The transition toward minimally invasive cardiac surgery is no longer solely about reducing incision size; it is about creating a standardized, versatile, and sustainable concept. The direct-view transaxillary approach represents a significant evolution that is ready for widespread clinical adoption. It provides a simplified surgical setup that enhances the experience for both patients and surgeons.…
This educational video reviews the anatomy of the aorto-mitral junction and demonstrates how the aorto-mitral angle influences mitral valve geometry, surgical exposure, and repair strategy. Using a custom valve model and pathological specimens, the video illustrates the spatial relationship between the aortic valve, mitral valve annulus, and aorto-mitral continuity, highlighting the transition from traditional anatomical…
This week on The Beat, CTSNet Editor-in-Chief Joel Dunning spoke with Dr. Ahmed Ghazy, Head of Minimally Invasive Surgery at Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany, about robotic cardiac surgery adoption and training. Dr. Ghazy shares his experience working with Dr. M. M. Yusuf, a cardiothoracic and vascular surgeon at Apollo Hospitals in Chennai, India.…
A 69-year-old female smoker (82 pack years) was incidentally diagnosed with a left lung tumor. Imaging revealed an 18×18×10 mm lower-lobe nodule and a 24×30 mm hypermetabolic interbronchial lymph node infiltrating the upper lobe parenchyma. Positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) showed intense uptake in both lesions (maximum standardized uptake value [SUVmax] 13.8 and 21.4). Endobronchial…
In this study, Sogabe and colleagues investigated the impact of weather on the incidence of acute aortic dissection in a cohort of 293 patients. During a 1,096-day study period (January 2019 to December 2021), a total of 293 cases of acute aortic dissection were identified, including 206 Stanford type A and 87 type B dissections. The authors…
In this episode of The Atrium, host Dr. Alice Copperwheat speaks with Dr. Filip Casselman, Staff Surgeon and Co-Director of the Cardiovascular Center at OLV Clinic (AZORG), Aalst, Belgium, about aortic valve replacement (AVR). The discussion explores the anatomy of the aortic valve, the pathology of aortic stenosis (AS) and aortic regurgitation (AR), and their…
Ectopic parathyroid adenomas in the anterior mediastinum are rare and present significant diagnostic and surgical challenges. This video shows the case of a 49-year-old male with a history of hypertension who presented with severe hypercalcemia (17.9 mg/dL) and acute kidney injury. Diagnostic evaluation, including 18F-choline positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) (1), identified an ectopic parathyroid…
This interview highlights safer sternotomies and reducing wound complications. At the 2026 American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) Annual Meeting, thoracic surgeon and CTSNet Editor-in-Chief Joel Dunning spoke with Dr. Klaudiusz Stoklosa, third year cardiac surgeon resident at McGill University, Toronto, Canada, sharing important insights on safer sternotomies. The discussion included the pathology of deep…
CTSNet Editor-in-Chief Joel Dunning speaks with Drs. Michael Mack and Tom Nguyen about the proposed US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services changes to how cardiologists and cardiac surgeons interact during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures. Dr. Mack explained the current heart team system, established in 2011 through collaboration with the US Food and…
This week on The Beat, CTSNet Editor-in-Chief Joel Dunning speaks with Drs. Michael Mack and Tom Nguyen about the proposed US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services changes to how cardiologists and cardiac surgeons interact during transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures. Dr. Mack explained the current heart team system, established in 2011 through collaboration…
This case presents an exceptionally rare and previously unreported combination of intrinsic carotid stenosis and chronic external compression due to a retained ballistic injury. A retained stray bullet injury from 1995 remained untreated for nearly 30 years. In 2025, the patient presented with chest pain. Evaluation revealed 85 percent carotid artery stenosis. The retained bullet…
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