Three-port (one incision plus two-port) endoscopic mitral valve surgery without robotic assistance.
OBJECTIVE
Totally endoscopic minimally invasive mitral valve surgery (MIMVS) is technically demanding and often performed with robotic assistance. We hypothesized that three-port video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) would facilitate endoscopic MIMVS and evaluated its feasibility and safety.


METHODS
From October 2010 to June 2016, we performed first-time MIMVS in 250 consecutive patients (122 male), with median age of 65 years (54-73 years, 25-75 percentile). The thoracic access ports comprised one small (3-5 cm) thoracotomy without a rib spreader plus two trocars (one for the endoscope and one for left-handed instruments), thus establishing triangular three-port VATS. Cannulas, an aortic clamp, and a left atrial retractor were inserted through the thoracotomy, and right-handed instruments were inserted through the remaining space. Cardiopulmonary bypass was established through a groin incision.


RESULTS
The etiology of the mitral valve lesion was myxomatous degeneration in 70% of patients, rheumatic disease in 9%, infectious endocarditis in 6%, and other conditions in 15%. Mitral valve repair was performed in 233 patients and replacement in 27. Two patients underwent conversion to replacement after attempted repair. Forty-nine patients underwent tricuspid annuloplasty, and 45 underwent the Maze procedure. One in-hospital death occurred within 30 days. Two patients developed stroke, three underwent re-exploration for bleeding, one developed low output syndrome, and one required new haemodialysis. The aortic clamp, bypass, and total operation times were 119 (94-149), 166 (134-200) and 237 (204-285) min, respectively, median (25-75%). The 5-year survival and reoperation-free rates were 98.3% ± 0.9% and 96.9% ± 1.2%, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Three-port endoscopic MIMVS appears reproducible and safe.
Toshiaki
T
Ito
Atsuo
A
Maekawa
Satoshi
S
Hoshino
Yasunari
Y
Hayashi
Sadanari
S
Sawaki
Junji
J
Yanagisawa
Masayoshi
M
Tokoro
D000368:Aged; D004724:Endoscopy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008943:Mitral Valve / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
Endoscope; Minimally invasive surgery; Mitral valve