title: A new needle driver for minientry coronary artery bypass.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article describes our clinical experience with a new needle driver (Olympus, Tokyo, Japan), which we have produced to facilitate minithoracotomy or port-access coronary artery anastomosis with the running suture technique.
  
  
  METHODS
  The needle driver is 21 cm long, weighs 38 g, and has a grip shaft 1.4 cm in diameter. The device is held like a pencil. A side lever and a revolving disk in the shaft are manipulated with the fingers; a fine needle with a 7-0/8-0 monofilament suture can be grasped/released and driven to penetrate the coronary arterial wall. This device was employed in 10 consecutive patients (8 men, 2 women, 73 +/- 7.5 years old), and off-pump bypass to the left anterior descending artery was achieved using the left internal thoracic artery or vein via a minithoracotomy (4.2 +/- 0.6 cm long).
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no instrument-related injury during each anastomosis. The mean sewing time per anastomosis was 12 minutes (range, 8-18 minutes). Angiography confirmed the patency of the graft in all cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although our experience is limited, we consider the present needle driver to be a viable device for facilitating off-pump, minientry coronary artery anastomosis with the suturing technique.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Tokyo Metropolitan Fuchu General Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshiya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohtsuka
authors.forename: Mikio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ninomiya
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nonaka
authors.forename: Taisei
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maemura
mesh_terms: D000714:Anastomosis, Surgical / Q000295:instrumentation*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D006801:Humans; D008904:Miniaturization; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation*; D009339:Needles; D013536:Suture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D016896:Treatment Outcome