Cardiac surgeon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Cardiac Surgeon is a surgeon who performs cardiac surgery - operative procedures on the heart and great vessels.
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[edit] Training
In the United States and Canada, a cardiac surgery residency typically comprises anywhere from six to nine years (or longer) of training to become a fully qualified surgeon. Cardiac surgery training may be combined with thoracic surgery and / or vascular surgery and called cardiovascular (CV) / cardiothoracic (CT) / cardiovascularthoracic (CVT) surgery. Cardiac surgeons may enter a cardiac surgery residency directly from medical school, or first complete a general surgery residency followed by a fellowship. Cardiac surgeons may further sub-specialise cardiac surgery by doing a fellowship in a variety of topics including: pediatric cardiac surgery, cardiac transplantation, adult aqcuired heart disease, etc...
[edit] Canada
Historically, cardiac surgeons in Canada completed general surgery followed by a fellowship in CV / CT / CVT. During the 1990's, the Canadian cardiac surgery training programs changed to six-year "direct-entry" programs following medical school. The direct-entry format provides residents with experience related to cardiac surgery they would not receive in a general surgery program (e.g. echocardiography, coronary care unit, cardiac pathology, etc).
Contemporary Canadian candidates completing general surgery and wishing to pursue cardiac surgery often complete a cardiothoracic surgery fellowship in the United States; the University of Toronto offers a three-year cardiac surgery fellowship post general surgery.
[edit] United States
In the United States cardiac surgery training is combined with thoracic surgery and called cardiothoracic surgery. Cardiothoracic surgeons in the U.S. first complete a general surgery residency (typically five-six years), followed by a cardiothoracic surgery fellowship. Recently, however, options for a six-year thoracic residency (in place of the GS Residency)have been established at a few select institutions. The CT fellowship typically takes between two or three years, but certification is based on the number of surgeries performed as the operating surgeon, not the time spent in the program. In addition, The American Board of Thoracic Surgery offers a special pathway certificate in Congenital Heart Surgery which typically equals an additional year of fellowship.
[edit] Career
[edit] United States
According to the 2006 MGMA Physician Compensation and Production Survey the average compensation of a cardiac surgeon is $470,000 USD .[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Overview of the University of Toronto cardiac surgery program, a Canadian direct-entry training program.
- http://www.sts.org/ The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
- http://www.aats.org/ American Association for Thoracic Surgery
- http://www.ctsnet.org/ The Cardiothoracic Surgery Network
- http://www.abts.org/index.html American Board of Thoracic Surgery
Surgeries/Surgical diseases of the aorta
Aortic aneurysm, Aortic dissection, Bentall procedure, David procedure, Marfan syndrome
Valvular Heart Disease
Aortic valve repair, Aortic valve replacement, Ross procedure, Mitral valve repair, Mitral valve replacement, Tricuspid valve repair, Tricuspid valve replacement
Surgeries/Surgical diseases of the myocardium
Coronary artery bypass surgery, Ischemic VSD, Maze procedure, Septal myectomy, Ventricular reduction
Heart transplantation
Ischemic cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, Ventricular assist device
Congenital heart disease
Atrial septal defect, Ebstein's anomaly, Pulmonary stenosis, Tetralogy of Fallot, Transposition of the great arteries, Ventricular septal defect
