Meet the editors

Dr. Andrea Montalto obtained his medical degree at "Federico II" University School of Medicine in Naples, Italy. After completing his residency in cardiac surgery at the University Federico II, he moved to Rome to complete his training by attending the cardiac surgery center at S. Camillo Hospital. Since 2006 he has been a permanent staff surgeon at S. Camillo Hospital, Department of Cardiac Surgery and Transplantation, Rome, Italy. Dr. Montalto

has shown particular interest in the field of surgical treatment of advanced heart failure, becoming familiar in the management of patients implanted with mechanical devices. Since 2012 he has been serving as the head of the Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) program at the center of cardiac surgery at San Camillo Hospital. He is an active member of Italian Society of Cardiac Surgery (SICCH) and European Registry for Patients with Mechanical Circulatory Support (EUROMACS).

Dr. Antonio Loforte is currently a staff surgeon and co-chair of the mechanical circulatory support program at the Department of Cardiothoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery, S. Orsola Hospital, Bologna University, Italy. He completed his cardiothoracic surgery residency at the University of Bologna, S. Orsola Hospital (Italy), at St. Antonius Ziekenhuis, Nieuwegein (the Netherlands), and at the Deutsches Herzzentrum, Berlin

(Germany). He additionally joined the Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Division of Transplant and Assist Devices, in Houston, Texas, USA. Dr. Loforte is a member of a number of professional organizations, including the prestigious Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT), American Society for Artificial Internal Organs (ASAIO), European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS), Regional Health Improvement Collaboratives (RHICS), and Italian Society of Cardiac Surgery (SICCH) among others. His bibliography lists over 60 peer-reviewed original articles, 180 abstracts (communications) for international meetings, 10 book chapters, and one manual. He serves as a reviewer for 21 international journals and is on the editorial board of nine. He received a "European PhD label" in Organ Transplantation and three international awards in Europe and the USA.

Cristiano Amarelli is a nonacademic cardiac surgeon and has been involved in the field of heart transplantation during the last 15 years with strong scientific activity in the field of transplantation, mechanical valve, and mechanical circulatory support. Born in Naples, he graduated at the Second University of Naples wherein in 2003 he completed his training in cardiovascular surgery. He is an active promoter of heart donation for the European

Cardiothoracic Transplant Association (ECTTA) stimulating and coordinating the writing process of the European Consensus Conference on thoracic donors. With the European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT) he participates in the development of the ESOT E-learning module on transplantation whose heart module he edited with the ECTTA board. He takes an active part in the editorial board and historical committee of the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs (ASAIO) and is an active reviewer for many journals and international meetings, being named a top peer reviewer in 2017. Last year he undertook a national scheme looking to expand the adoption of mechanical circulatory support in Italy under the auspices of the National Transplant Center and the Italian Society of Cardiac Surgery. He was involved in the editorial project "Mechanical Circulatory Support in End-Stage Heart Failure."

Contents

**Preface XI**

**Chapter 1 1**

**Chapter 2 13**

**Chapter 3 25**

**Chapter 4 35**

**Chapter 5 53**

**Chapter 6 69**

**Chapter 7 91**

Minimally Invasive Ventricular Assist Device Surgery *by Marina Comisso, Andrea Montalto, Francesca Nicolò,* 

*by Emily Bond, Crystal Valadon and Mark Slaughter*

Tips and Pitfalls in Robotic Mitral Valve Surgery

*by Imran Khan, Julian A. Smith and Naresh Trehan*

*by Salah E. Altarabsheh, Salil V. Deo and Yakov E. Elgudin*

Minimally Invasive Right Anterior Mini-Thoracotomy Aortic

Revascularisation Strategies in OPCAB (Off Pump Coronary

*by Murali P. Vettath, Kannan A. Vellachamy, Nitin Ganagadharan, Madhu Ravisankar, Smera Koroth and Gopalakrishnan Raman*

Minimally Invasive Approach in Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease *by Massimo A. Padalino, Demetrio G. Pittarello, Vladimiro L. Vida* 

*Romina Pantanella and Francesco Musumeci*

Cannulation for Cardiopulmonary Bypass

*by Takashi Murashita*

Valve Replacement

*and Giovanni Stellin*

Artery Bypass)

Aortic Root Reconstruction
